Devotion
For those who got a chance to watch our coverage of EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson's masterfully composed performance yesterday, this shouldn't come as a surprise:
Shortly before Stephen L. Johnson was sworn in by President Bush as administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, he gave the president a towel symbolizing a New Testament passage in which Jesus washes his disciples' feet. The towel, given to graduates of Johnson's alma mater, a small evangelical college, symbolizes a life of Christian service.
Like the president, Johnson is a deeply religious man who says he relies on his faith in his work. Johnson prayed and spoke gratefully of early-morning prayer sessions held in his government office in a promotional video filmed there for an offshoot of a worldwide Christian ministry.
EPA's own staff thinks the Administration has taken an indefensible position on California's request to regulate carbon emissions from vehicles and will lose when challenged in court. The underlying issue--regulation of greenhouse gas emissions--is obviously important. But this appears to be another significant example of the Bush Administration's politicization of science, agency decision-making, and public policy--which transcends any particular issue. Yesterday, Johnson showed himself to be a willing disciple.
For instance, did Johnson coordinate the timing of his controversial decision on the California request with the White House's PR campaign on last month's passage of the energy bill? Despite all evidence, Johnson implied (he exhibited a devotee's discipline in never giving a straight answer) it did not.
The Senate intends to continue its investigation, but rather than waiting to get to the bottom of what happened--say what you will, but the Gonzales MO is effective at stalling investigations--Committee Chairman Barbara Boxer (D-CA) has introduced a bill to overturn Johnson's decision.
--David Kurtz
http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com
