I think they're doing this a) as a sop to their base and b) as a way to allow McCain to deviate from a Bush policy so they can try to minimize the 'McSame' label.

It's not an executive order -- it's a rulemaking, meaning the new rules will be codified in the code of federal regulations. I'm sure enviro groups will challenge the new rules as arbitrary and capricious, and contrary to law, which will box up the new rules long enough for a new administration to take over, but still, harder to undo than an executive order.

It’s the 2005 Pombo bill without an actual Congressional vote.

And Halle's right on the idea of this being a "gears-bollixer."

Josh Bolton issued an edit to all the agencies to make sure that they submit regulations with timing in mind which will prevent the Congress from using the procedures of the Congressional Review Act to strike them down. Under the CRA, major regulations go into effect only after a period of layover which (in theory) gives Congress time to come in and nulify them if necessary. The Bushies are very clearly timing things so to avoid that law. The upshot of this is that a 111th Congress is going to have to try to legislate away a bunch of bad regulations that are already in effect. If they don't get 60 in the Senate, the Bushes essentially win, because any measure to do so could be fillibustered. expect a lot more of this type of thing before the end.

Well, congress won't have to legislate them away if Obama wins; new rulemaking can undo this rulemaking. But it takes longer, especially if you want to have the kind of rulemaking that withstands legal challenge, which Bush's industry buddies will certainly launch. The new rulemaking could just put back the old rules, but would still need a legally adequate statement justifying the move. and Pat is right that this is centrally coordinated and happening all over, and can't be struck down the way Bush struck down all of Clinton's last minute rulemaking. I believe the rulemaking defining birth control as abortion will create this same problem.

...all you can do is sit back and admire the chutzpah.

Admire?
I'm constantly awestruck.

And while the spirit of this is pure King George the thoroughness and attention to detail makes me suspect that the means and execution belong to someone else.

Cheney would certainly do this. The subtlety and sneakiness are right up his alley. Addington, provided someone can control his impulse to bite, would be great on the details. The problem is that I can't believe that the only target is endangered species. If the non-governmental branch is behind this they're not wasting all this effort on the Endangered Species Act alone. It's only a start. There is much more, and much worse, to come.

Criminals all. These low lifes are criminals and I call for them to be prosecuted vigorously the second they are out of office.

Criminals all. These low lifes are criminals and I call for them to be prosecuted vigorously the second they are out of office.

I think it may have been the Ice Station Tango blog that warned recently that Bush and his cronies would be issuing a flurry of Executive Orders and signing statements before November, to really bollix things up for the next president. True dat.

Unbelievable.

One simply gets outrage fatigue from this group...

This isn't the first destructive reg that they're trying to slip through at the last minute in violation of their own (Bolton Memo)rules. Elaine Chao at the Department of Labor also slipped a new "risk assessment" rule into OMB for review that would greatly delay and weaken any future rulemaking by OSHA or MSHA. Like the Endangered Species rule, the Administration is refusing to brief Congress about it. Even MSHA and OSHA staff are opposing it, but it's coming right from the Secretary's office. This, from an administration that has been almost totally unable to issue any new worker protection regulations. More details on the DOL rule here and here.

The proposed rule has a 30 day comment period, which I think is the shortest comment period that they can get away with. They have to respond to every comment in the final rule, so if a lot of people comment, that could slow them down a bit, but I would expect that they are determined to have their final rule no later than October 1.

The rulemaking process is so complex that any President is almost always left with something hanging when they leave office on January 20. Remember Arsenic levels? The Clinton EPA was stuck evaluating over 6000 pages of comments and didn't publish the final rule till January 22...ooops!!! Two days late. Those two days were enough so that Bush could put a hold on the new regs and the rest is, as they say, history.

Based on the short comment period for what they know is going to be a contentious rule, I would say that the word has gone out that there will be no Arsenic left over in the Bush WH.

I'd like to know just what the legal and Constitutional status of "rulemaking" is, if neither executive order nor Congressional statute. What are they, where can I find out about how they work etc?

A rulemaking is a regulation, issued by a federal agency or department (in this case, the Department of Interior and the Department of Commerce) that purports to interpret a federal statute (here, the Endangered Species Act).

The promulgation of regulations is generally governed by the Administrative Procedure Act, which generally requires, among other things, public notice and an opportunity to comment on all regulations before they are finalized.

Majun makes a great point about the importance of getting public comments into the record in this case. NRDC (www.nrdc.org) and the NRDC Action Fund (http://www.nrdcactionfund.org/) will have a link that lets you easily comment up soon.

"Vladimir Putin described his recent military adventures in South Ossetia as a "narrow" redeployment of Russian" peace keepers. The war is being made by peace keepers. Orwell would not be surprised.

And to think, if Pelosi put impeachment back on the table, this would all be over in 24 hours.

"This executive order would basically allow, say, the Army Corps of Engineers, to decide for itself if their projects were endangering any species"

Now lets hold on here. The regulatory element of the Corps of Engineers is a strong proponent of the Clean Water Act and the Rivers and Harbors Act. The Endangered Species Act is actually under Fish and Wildlife who coordinate with the Corps on projects brought to them by developers. Both of these agencies continue in their committment to these acts in spite of manpower shortages, budget constraints, and "adjustments" to their mission statements by higher-ups. Those who have feet on the ground and are doing the actual work of environmental regulation advocate and implement these acts to the best of their ability. Consultants aside, when allowed to exercise the full extent of their regulatory and enforcement capability, the Corps and Fish and Wildlife are one of the strongest proponents of these acts. The past few years has seen serious curtailment of that capability.

Consultants add cost to the developer's projects, add time to the project, adds signficant weight to a complex decision-making process that strives to find an equitable balance between maintaining wildlife spaces and completion of development projects. Developers work for balance because balance is part of the deal to get their project done. Being rid of consultants and/or independent review aids developers. They wouldn't be so inclined to find any balance on their own. It is these federal agencies who work very hard with developers to find and maintain that vital balance.

This is the Bush Administration to a "T". Developers and corporations consistantly challenge the Corps, Congress, and every environmental regulatory agency there is. There is so much money at stake now, with land becoming premium tender, and premium land, like shore front, like "protected" shore front, like "wildlife refuge" shore front, are coming under legal attack by monied sources. How much money do developers stand to gain turning these beautiful pristine tracts into developments, selling the cookie-cutter homes, turning their profit, and walking away? And this has nothing to do with providing affordable housing either, unless you catagorize $250,000+ water-front homes as affordable.

Congress does tend to favor environmental legacies for our future generations. But don't underestimate the dedication and strength of purpose of the people who do regulatory work, even if they work for a federal agency.

These folks stand every day on the volatile and ever-shifting front lines between overdevelopment and wildlife protection. These are people who are dedicated and fervent in their committment to these acts and they are the ones who can and do have significant impact in environmental protection.

Those employed in the regulatory division of the Corps of Engineers and Fish and Wildlife fully understand what they have been entrusted to protect.

It's a set up for the Obama administration. They know full well that the rule making will be changed once a Democratic president takes office.

The process of un-doing these rules will provide months of fodder for talk radio and MSM to position Obama as another "tree-hugging, effete ultra-liberal"

Ain't nothing wrong with hugging trees, it's hugging Bushes that perpetuate the problem.

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