With ten days left before the election, we offer these sterling examples from President Bush's efforts to take care of his corporate constiuency:
August 2003: The Environmental Protection Agency relied on anecdotes from industries it regulates, not comprehensive data, when it claimed that relaxing air pollution rules for industrial plants would cut emissions and reduce health risks.
September 2003: The Bush Administration applies backdoor techniques to privatize air traffic control.
September 2003: Pharmaceutical companies lobby to ensure that the new prescription drug benefit doesn't allow the negotiation of bulk discounts, as Medicare does.
December 2003: To date, his administration caught and punished fewer polluters per month than the two previous administrations.
January 2004: Under pressure from appliance manufacturers, the Bush Administration tried to weaken energy-efficiency standards for new air conditioners, standards which could save American consumers $20 billion and avoid the need for 200 new electricity plants by 2030.
March 2004: Bush nominated a former lobbyist for the mining and cattle industries with no experience as a judge for a lifetime appointment on the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in California, which rules on many land use cases in the West.
August 2004: A former top mining company executive is running the Mine Safety and Health Administration, and has rescinded more than a half-dozen proposals intended to make coal miners' jobs safer, including steps to limit miners' exposure to toxic chemicals.
