#79 - Changing Laws on the QT

The New York Times reports that Bush et al. are quietly changing regulations to help their business friends:

Allies and critics of the Bush administration agree that the Sept. 11 attacks, the war in Afghanistan and the war in Iraq have preoccupied the public, overshadowing an important element of the president's agenda: new regulatory initiatives. Health rules, environmental regulations, energy initiatives, worker-safety standards and product-safety disclosure policies have been modified in ways that often please business and industry leaders while dismaying interest groups representing consumers, workers, drivers, medical patients, the elderly and many others.

And most of it was done through regulation, not law - lowering the profile of the actions. The administration can write or revise regulations largely on its own, while Congress must pass laws. For that reason, most modern-day presidents have pursued much of their agendas through regulation. But administration officials acknowledge that Mr. Bush has been particularly aggressive in using this strategy.

Of course, according to the President's spokesperson, all this is just a matter "common sense":

Scott McClellan, the chief White House spokesman, said of the changes, "The president's common-sense policies reflect the values of America, whether it is cracking down on corporate wrongdoing or eliminating burdensome regulations to create jobs."

In Bush's world, the "values of America" include eliminating environmental standards, creating unsafe conditions for workers and allowing energy companies to bilk consumers. We're not sure if this falls under "compassionate" or "conservatism," but either way, the public has been deeply harmed by this Administration's regulatory efforts.