Hill Pushback May Spur Obama Focus On Executive Orders For EPA Goals

摘要

Opposition to new EPA rules from Republicans in the divided 112th Congress is likely to make it difficult to advance new environmental legislation, so the Obama administration may increasingly use executive orders (E.O.) and other presidential authority to advance key EPA goals, sources say. Other key activist sources have indicated that executive-level action to advance clean energy issues is expected in the face of opposition and increased scrutiny from the Republican-led House. Activists and other groups that favor stronger environmental and human health regulation are welcoming the potential strategy. E.O.S can be "enormously effective" for an administration by putting specific environmental priorities on the agenda, says a source with the think tank Center for Progressive Reform (CPR), which supports stricter rules protecting the environment and human health.