The U.S. Supreme Court has
dealt a blow (no, not that kind) to
Drunky McStagger and his flying monkeys over global warming.
The nation's highest court by a 5-4 vote said the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency "has offered no reasoned explanation" for its refusal to regulate carbon dioxide and other emissions from new cars and trucks that contribute to climate change.
The ruling came in one of the most important environmental cases to reach the Supreme Court in decades. It marked the first high court decision in a case involving global warming.
[...]
Justice John Paul Stevens, writing for the court majority, rejected the administration's argument that it lacked the power to regulate such emissions. He said the EPA's decision was "arbitrary, capricious or otherwise not in accordance with law."
In sending the case back for further proceedings, Stevens said the high court did not decide which policy the EPA must follow. "We hold only that EPA must ground its reasons for action or inaction in the statute," he wrote.
The Bush administration has consistently rejected capping greenhouse gas emissions as bad for business and U.S. workers.
The court's four most conservative members -- Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito, both appointees of President George W. Bush, and Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas -- dissented.
I have consistently rejected the Bush administration as bad for ... everything.
What are the priorities here? For the reality-based community, it's the preservation of the planet and its future for our children and grandchildren and so on. For the Bush cabal, it's all about money.
The Bushies are known for their unintentionally ironic titling of legislation, like "No Child Left Behind" for an educational program that leaves
every child behind or the "Clean Air Act" for a law that destroys our atmosphere. But this time, they tried something new: retroactive irony. Only in Drunky's America can the
Environmental Protection Agency argue that they
shouldn't have to protect the environment.
Hats off to the five justices in the majority, and especially Justice Anthony Kennedy, who with the departure of Justice Sandra Day O'Connor last year becomes the most likely swing vote on the High Court. He voted correctly this time, and I applaud him.
I also am pleased once again to congratulate Drunky McStagger and his crime syndicate: today's
Blast Off! Daily
Schadenfreude is for you!
Labels: Anthony Kennedy, environment, EPA, George W. Bush, global warming, John Paul Stevens, Sandra Day O'Connor, Supreme Court
