John M. Broder of the New York Times is reporting that Lisa P. Jackson is stepping down as administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency after four years in the position. Broder reports:
Ms. Jackson’s departure comes as many in the environmental movement are questioning Mr. Obama’s commitment to dealing with climate change and other environmental problems. After his re-election, and a campaign in which global warming was barely mentioned by either candidate, Mr. Obama said that his first priority would be jobs and the economy and that he intended only to foster a “conversation” on climate change in the coming months.
That ambivalence is a far cry from the hopes that accompanied his early months in office, when he identified climate change as one of humanity’s defining challenges. Mr. Obama put the White House’s full lobbying power behind a House cap-and-trade bill that would have limited climate-altering emissions and brought profound changes in how the nation produces and consumes energy.
But after the effort stalled in the Senate, the administration abandoned broad-scale climate change efforts, instead focusing on smaller regulatory actions largely though the Clean Air Act.
The White House accepted Ms. Jackson’s resignation and stated that her decision to leave was hers alone. In a statement, President Obama “praised” her performance and called her an important part of his team.
Read more at the New York Times.
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