This post is outsourced to regular reader rph3 from the great state of Virginia:
I know you’re all left coast and all that, but here we have long had one of the most open festering environmental sores in existence — the Chesapeake Bay and the cleanup efforts that have failed miserably for over 30 years. This is a classic case where Republican declarations that “states should work constructively with the fed to achieve our goals and not have the fed ram down our throats” have predictably resulted in states ignoring the fed and not working at all together. And that has resulted in extreme degradation of the Bay.
Anyway, it’s just in EPA blowhard stage, full of threats to maybe get angry and do something — but it’s more than anyone has done in 30+ years.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/09/24/AR2010092402864.html
I’m sure progressives will loudly promote this bold (and it is bold) action by the Obama administration and give credit where it is due.
But this also has the classic risks of progressive policy — environmental improvement will likely result in increased taxes and will cause a significant backlash. And while I’d like to think people would understand the tradeoff, I …. uh. Yeah right.
Anyway this is change. And it could be dramatic. And it could financially hurt.
