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Politics : President Barack Obama -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: geode00 who wrote (52531)	3/24/2009 2:37:03 PM
From: Skywatcher	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 149317

ANOTHER victory against the BUSH destruction of the USA EPA halts hundreds of mountaintop mining permits this minute By DINA CAPPIELLO Associated Press Writer (AP:WASHINGTON) The Environmental Protection Agency put hundreds of mountaintop coal-mining permits on hold Tuesday, saying it wants to evaluate the projects' impact on streams and wetlands. The decision, announced by EPA administrator Lisa Jackson, targets a controversial practice that allows coal mining companies to dump waste from mountaintop mining into streams and wetlands. It could delay 150-250 permits being sought by companies wanting to begin blasting mountaintops to access coal. Those permits are issued by the Army Corps of Engineers, an agency that has been criticized by environmental groups and has been sued for failing to thoroughly evaluate the environmental impact of mountaintop removal. Under the Clean Water Act, companies cannot discharge rock, dirt and other debris into streams unless they can show that it will not cause permanent damage to waterways or the fish and other wildlife that live in it. Last month, a three-judge appeals panel in Richmond, Va., overturned a lower court's ruling that would have required the Corps to conduct more extensive reviews. The appeals court decision cleared the way for a backlog of permits that had been delayed until the lawsuit was resolved. The EPA's action on Tuesday leaves those permit requests in limbo a little longer. "If the EPA didn't step in and do something now, all those permits would go forward," said Joe Lovett, executive director for the Appalachian Center for the Economy and the Environment. "There are permits that will bury 200 miles of streams pending before the Corps." Carol Raulston, a spokeswoman for the National Mining Association, said further delays in the permits would cost the region high-paying jobs. "This is very troubling, not only for jobs in the region, but production of coal generally," said Raulston. In a separate action, the EPA recommended denying two permits the Army Corps of Engineers was planning to issue that would allow two companies to fill thousands of feet of streams with mining waste in West Virginia and Kentucky. In letters sent Monday to the Corps' office in Huntington, W.Va., the EPA said that Central Appalachia Mining and Highland Mining Co. have not done enough to avoid and minimize damage to water quality and stream channels. In the case of the Highland Mining's plans, which would fill in approximately 13,174 feet of stream in Logan County, W.Va., the agency said it believes the project "will result in substantial and unacceptable impacts to aquatic resources of national importance."

To: geode00 who wrote (52531)	3/24/2009 5:47:24 PM
From: koan	Respond to of 149317

""What the heck is going on.>> We are being raped, and I say that as a hard core liberal democrat!

To: geode00 who wrote (52531)	3/26/2009 5:54:48 PM
From: stockman_scott	Respond to of 149317

Obama Will Outline Auto Strategy ‘in Next Few Days’ By Roger Runningen March 26 (Bloomberg) -- President Barack Obama said he will outline his strategy for the automobile industry “in the next few days” and suggested he is open to providing automakers with more aid. “We need to preserve a U.S. auto industry,” Obama said today as he answered questions at a White House Internet town-hall event. “We will provide them with some help” even though “it’s not popular” right now to assist automakers. “My job is to measure the costs of allowing these auto companies just to collapse versus us figuring out, can they come up with a viable plan?,” Obama said. General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC are operating with $17.4 billion in U.S. aid and have requested as much as $21.6 billion more. Obama’s auto task force will probably recommend that the government make more money available to carmakers, U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow, a Michigan Democrat, told reporters. Obama said any aid is conditional on the automakers coming up with a plan to remain financially viable. “It is appropriate for us to say are there ways that we can provide help,” the president said. “But the price is that you’ve got to finally restructure to deal with these long-standing problems, and that means that everybody’s going to have to give a little bit.” Conditions and Mandates Representative Mike Rogers, a Michigan Republican, said aid conditions such as down-sizing are reasonable, though “big government mandates” such as fuel-efficiency requirements wouldn’t help the automakers. “We need to be very, very careful they don’t put conditions to further the mandates that they’ve already placed on these companies,” Rogers said on Bloomberg Television. White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said today the president likely will announce his plans before he leaves March 31 for a trip to Europe that includes a meeting of the Group of 20 nations in London. Gibbs made his comment at his daily briefing for reporters that followed Obama’s town-hall event. Senator Carl Levin, a Michigan Democrat, said yesterday that Obama’s task force will announce more aid for GM and Chrysler within a week. GM said 7,500 United Auto Workers members have signed up for buyouts the company needs as part of cuts to keep $13.4 billion in U.S. aid, more than doubling a Barclays Capital estimate. The retirements and buyouts open slots for the biggest U.S. automaker to hire new workers for half the current union rate. Under the federal loans GM says it needs to survive, labor costs must match those of Japanese automakers in the U.S. GM and Chrysler are encouraging workers to accept buyouts, retire or quit after concessions this year eliminated benefits related to job security and unemployment pay. To contact the reporter on this story: Roger Runningen in Washington at rrunningen@bloomberg.net Last Updated: March 26, 2009 16:26 EDT