Supreme Court Delivers Huge Blow To EPA’s Ability To Control Private Property

From The Daily Caller:

The U.S. Supreme Court just made it easier for individuals and companies to challenge federal agencies’ authority to regulate private property under federal law — a decision with huge implications for a major Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulation.

Chief Justice John Roberts sided with Hawkes Co., a family-owned business in North Dakota, that wanted to extract peat from wetlands they owned in northern Minnesota. The court said Hawkes could immediately challenge a federal agency’s decision to prevent them from using their private property.
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Hawkes Co., which provides peat for golf courses and sports fields, was prevented from harvesting peat from their property after the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers ruled the wetlands they wanted to harvest from were under federal control. That means Hawkes would need a special permit to harvest peat from their own property.

Wait, what! The owners of the land, were being forced to get a pernit to harvest from their own land.

WTF?

Republicans Demand Answers To Gold King Mine Disaster

From The Daily Caller:

Republican lawmakers said Thursday they will conduct their own probes of the Gold King Mine disaster that poured toxic yellow waste into rivers and creeks of three Western states and the Navajo Nation. Republicans are doing this since the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) failed to launch a criminal investigation.

No one has been held accountable five months after an EPA order prompted a contractor to accidentally release three million gallons of mine waste toxins into Cement Creek, a tributary of the Animas River. Members of Congress are ready to step in and take names, just as they believe EPA would do if a private company had caused the spill.

It's about time that someone in Congress holds the EPA responsible for the spill.

The Week in Pictures -- Steve Harvey Edition

From the guys at Powerline Blog:

Sixth Circuit blocks EPA water rule nationwide

From Hot Air:

Several weeks ago, a federal court issued an injunction against EPA enforcement of a new rule based on the Clean Water Act, arguing that the Obama administration had exceeded its Congressional authority. The ruling only applied in the thirteen states party to the lawsuit, however, but the administration still argued that the North Dakota court did not have the jurisdiction to rule on the issue, and that only an appellate court could hear the case. Regardless, the EPA announced shortly afterward that it would continue to enforce the new rule in all other states.

Be careful what you wish for. The Sixth Circuit handed down its own injunction against the rule today, and broadened its effect to all 50 states.

Boom!

Furthermore, the court expresses concern over what appeared to be a bait-and-switch in the comments process, and that the EPA simply cannot substantiate the rule with any solid science — a point made by the North Dakota court in August, too.

The Court sees right through at the BS used to justify the new EPA rule. If it goes to trial, I think the Regime is going lose because they didn't follow the right process.

Senators want EPA workers fired over mine spill

From The Hill via H/T at Instapundit:

Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?

So why is demanding firing of failed Government employees such a big deal? It was a common demand of President Bush. Alberto Gonzales, Michael Brown, Donald Rumsfeld, etc.

The Head of the Secret Service Resigned, so why shouldn't Gina McCarthy?

In Volkswagen's Defense

From The American Thinker:

Specifically, it is possible to see their "defeat device" (basically a piece of software that detunes diesel engines during testing, but lets them run hot and clean in actual customer use) as an inspired bit of civil disobedience.

So, with that in mind, here's how Volkswagen could use the difference between the "de facto" real world application of the rule and the "de jure" world of law to defend themselves.

The legal defense is straightforward: the law generally requires these engines to pass EPA specified tests at the time of testing -- and they do. This is, in most jurisdictions, simple, black letter law: there is literally no legal substance to the charge against them.

The reality based defense, however, would be that the rule is known to be both unrealistic in economic and technical terms, and environmentally counterproductive. Basically VW would defend itself by attacking the rule maker and pushing the idea that the whole is thing is driven by the leftist agenda, not environmental concern.

Unique take, might work in front of a judge, but a California Jury, dead meat.

How long before EPA seeks to regulate sunshine?

From Legal Insurrection:

When I saw this tweet earlier today (via @JWBritton), I was like WUT!?

Spoof account? Nope, verified.

True blue EPA:

The link in the tweet goes to a page that doesn’t exist.

Only the EPA can ignore the settled science that plants DON'T need sunshine.

Does anyone have any confidence on any of their other science?

EPA — The Other Villain in the Volkswagen Scam.

Via H/T at Instapundit:

But the hard reality is that this might not be the last such scam we’ll see. If the EPA continues on its anti-industry crusade, it’ll practically invite widespread disrespect for the law.

The EPA slashed allowable nitrogen dioxide car emissions from the already low 1.2 grams per mile average to 0.07 grams per mile in 2008 to boost air quality that courts at the time ruled was already pretty good and adequately protecting public health. The EPA is now poised to tighten that standard another 30 percent.

The problem for carmakers is that they can’t simultaneously satisfy such regulatory edicts and consumer demand.

Drivers want cheap, safe, powerful cars. That is exactly what the EPA’s NOx standards made it very difficult for VW to produce.

To be fair, the people behind the standards want us all riding buses.

You must include the California Air Resources Board (CARB) as part of the radical environmentalist cabal. They just make regulations, without and scientific justifications, it's a waving of the hand, "Make it so."

EPA Punishes States Refusing To Implement Cap-And-Trade

From The Daily Caller:

An overwhelming number of red states will be negatively impacted by the Environmental Protection Agency’s carbon regulations, a report from the Chamber of Commerce concluded.

The results are in stark contrast to consequences for more liberal or progressive states, who stand to gain financially from the new EPA rule.
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The states that predominantly produce oil, gas, and coal are likely to be debtor states—and hit hardest by the regulations—because these states will have a difficult time getting under the carbon cap.

California, Delaware, Idaho, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Oregon, and Washington are all creditor states that may ultimately sell their allowances to the rest of the debtor states.

The debtor states look like the ones who voted AGAINST the Dear Leader and the creditor states all seem to be supporters ........ It does seem suspicious.

EPA’s Own Diesel Crimes Worse Than VW’s

From Breitbart's Big Government:

There is no question that Volkswagen should be in trouble for intentionally rigging its diesel engines to skirt U.S. emissions requirements. But EPA’s own diesel exhaust wrongs put VW’s in the shade.
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The EPA has for years quietly conducted flagrantly illegal scientific experiments in which diesel exhaust was pumped into the lungs of sick people and senior citizens. As pictured nearby, EPA researchers pumped high levels of diesel exhaust from an idling truck into a gas chamber where an unwitting elderly and/or asthmatic victim sat for two hours inhaling it.
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As EPA admitted in litigation with me, it conducts these tests because the agency’s claim about the lethality of diesel exhaust rests largely upon studies that are merely statistical in nature. The human testing is an effort to provide some evidence of biological or medical plausibility for the statistical studies. So, yes, EPA is trying to harm people in order to validate its dubious statistical data.

So as between VW trying to gain an unfair advantage over the competition, and EPA trying to kill people in order to validate its regulations, it would seem that EPA is the actual diesel exhaust villain.

Illegal testing of human guinea pigs by the Government. Does the name Tuskegee ring a bell? Add that to the bogus science regarding the Animus River poisoning.

We are in the best scientific hands.

EPA Gives Green Awards Without Checking Facts

From The Daily Caller:

Green companies could be lying about their award-winning achievements for decreasing pollution, and the Environmental Protection Agency would never know it.

The EPA doesn’t verify data reported by the winners of the environmental agency’s Green Chemistry Awards – an achievement given to private groups for inventing pollution reducing methods, according to an EPA Inspector General report.

“The agency does not generally question or apply independent analysis to the data received,” the IG said. “Without data verification and transparency, the EPA risks reporting Green Chemistry Award results that are unreliable.”

Doesn't this just explain EVERYTHING you know about the EPA!

How Volkswagen cheated on the auto emissions rules

From Hot Air:

This story is a bit far afield from the normal politics and crime beat, but given how it just came at us out of left field it’s worth questioning whether or not a much larger can of worms has been opened up. The EPA announced this week that Volkswagen was in a lot of trouble – potentially facing billions of dollars in fines – for allegedly rigging the system and creating diesel cars which were designed to cheat on emissions tests during inspection. And they don’t seem to be disputing it, either. (Yahoo Finance News)
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Exit question: how likely is it that the geniuses at VW and Audi were the only ones to dream this up? This sounds like the sort of thing that a group of engineers might assume was never going to be found out because who is going around doing extra testing of vehicle emissions outside of an inspection station? (In fact, I’m still wondering how the EPA caught on to this unless VW had a disgruntled whistle blower among their ranks.) Are the big, American automakers scrambling right now to cover their own code?

This could be quite a industry scandal, if it's widespread.

UPDATE: Instapundit has a thought!

And once again, as with their attacks on Toyota in 2010, note that the US government is gunning for a non-UAW approved automaker.

Coincidence?

Mine owner tried to stop EPA from drilling, was threatened with fines

From Hot Air:

Hey, remember that time when the EPA blew a hole in the side of an abandoned mine and flooded the surrounding river basin with millions of gallons of toxic sludge? Ah… good times, my friends. At the time we wondered if they were going to fine themselves for all of the ecological damage they caused. Well, no such luck, natch. But there were some fines discussed. They came up in conversation when the mine owner tried to keep them from messing around with site. Todd Hennis had some experience with the EPA in the past and they had caused some similar leaks at another property of his. This time he told them he didn’t want them in there messing around, but they made their position clear. (Washington Examiner)
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If Mr. Hennis is correct, the earlier incident was far more egregious. The EPA had collected large quantities of sludge and dumped it down a shaft in the New Mikado mine without telling Hennis that they were doing it. The chemicals later leached into the local water supply. So is somebody going to investigate precisely what these EPA characters have been up to out there in the mountains? Senator John McCain has called for an investigation, but even if they do find that some serious skulduggery has been going on, what do they do after that? I mean, who do we normally call to investigate an environmental disaster and determine what damages, if any, are due? We call the EPA. Are we going to have them investigate themselves?

What could possibly go wrong?

So, who watches the watchers? and who will fine them?

Democrats and greens scramble to run interference for EPA over toxic spill

From Rick Moran at the American Thinker Blog:

Despite the EPA admitting error and taking full responsibility for the 3 million gallon toxic mine waste spill in Colorado, Democrats and environmental groups are working overtime to spin fault for the spill while claiming it's really not that bad.

“Blaming the EPA for #AnimasRiver spill is like blaming a doctor for the disease,” Conservation Colorado said in a tweet. Colorado Democrat Rep. Joe Salazar tweeted, "Focus of #AnimasRiver contamination should be on mining companies and their mining practices, not EPA, yes?”

The Sierra Club Rocky Mountain chapter posted a link to an article titled “9 things you need to know about the Animas River spill.” The list includes “The EPA messed up, but they’re not the root cause” and “This isn’t the first time this has happened, nor is it the worst.”

Most Republicans and ordinary citizens were having none of it.

Washington Times:

Colorado state Sen. Ellen Roberts, a Republican who represents Durango, said she didn’t appreciate the campaign. She said it muddies the waters amid the effort to determine what toxins are in the river and a plan to clean up of the spill.

“It’s clear that the EPA from the start has admitted that they were the cause of the spill, so I find this troubling,” said Ms. Roberts. “These groups — they’re trying to shift the focus. I think they have a different agenda.”

The Gold King Mine hasn't been active since 1923, so the idea of blaming the mining companies is ludicrous.

All you have to do is ask yourself who would the defenders of the EPA react if the spill was by, say, BP?

Oh wait, that has already happened.

Three Signs the EPA/Army Corps Water Rule is a Disaster

From The American Thinker Blog:

The Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers’ final water rule under the Clean Water Act seeks to regulate almost every type of water in the country. And you don’t even need to get into the substance of the rule to know it’ll be a disaster. Here are three signs that this rule should be killed off immediately.

Sign 1 -- The Regulating Agency is Acting More like an Advocacy Group than a Federal Agency.

Sign 2 --The Rule Is Best Described as “Uncooperative” Federalism.

Sign 3 -- The Agency Appears to Hate the Rule as Much as the Public Does.
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The Corps also tried to make sure it wasn’t associated with the economic analysis or technical support document:

However, the Corps had no role in selecting or analyzing the data that EPA used in drafting either document [economic analysis or technical support document]. As a result, the documents can only be characterized as having been developed by the EPA, and should not identify the Corps as an author, co-author or substantive contributor…. Finally, the Corps of Engineers logo should be removed from these two documents.

If the Corp is running away from the Water Rule......................

Senate Report: EPA Official Convicted of Bilking Government Out of Nearly a Million Dollars Was Critical Player in Crafting EPA's "Playbook" on Regulations

From Ace of Spades HQ: Remember this guy? He skipped out of work constantly, and, at one point, collected a steady paycheck despite not showing up for work for a year and a half.

Between 2000 and 2012, Beale skipped work for at least 616 days. But his fraud wasn’t discovered until last year when it was found out that he was still getting paid for a year and a half but hadn’t shown up for work in that whole time. Under McCarthy, Beale missed at least 18 consecutive months of work, costing taxpayers more than $239,000.

He covered his absences by claiming he was working for top men in the CIA.

Who?

Top. Men.

But despite his chronic absenteeism, he did manage to do Big Things when he troubled himself to show up at work.

A report by Senate Republicans contends that the Environmental Protection Agency’s regulatory “playbook” was written by known agency fraudster John Beale, who put into place major air quality regulations that set the stage for “the exponential growth of the agency’s power over the American economy.” .....................

“This report will reveal that within the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), some officials making critically important policy decisions were not remotely qualified, anything but neutral, and in at least one case — EPA decision making was delegated to a now convicted felon and con artist, John Beale,” wrote Republicans on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee. ......................

“Together, Brenner and Beale implemented a plan, which this report refers to as ‘EPA’s Playbook,’” the senators continued. “The Playbook includes several tools first employed in the 1997 process, including sue-and-settle arrangements with a friendly outside group, manipulation of science, incomplete cost-benefit analysis reviews, heavy-handed management of interagency review processes, and capitalizing on information asymmetry, reinforced by resistance to transparency. Ultimately, the guiding principal behind the Playbook is the Machiavellian principal that the ends will justify the means.”

From the Most Transparent Administration evah!