Chamber of Commerce and Industry Lobbyist Weigh In on Carol Browner's Replacement

[KoKo]

Carol Browner to leave White House
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0111/48098_Page2.html

By MIKE ALLEN & DARREN SAMUELSOHN | 1/24/11 8:43 PM EST Updated: 1/24/11 11:57 PM EST

Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0111/48098.html#ixzz1C3ch2Bi3


Browner’s exit comes at a pivotal moment for a White House transitioning into reelection mode. It’s trying hard to appeal to industry, as evidenced by a recent executive order calling for a government-wide review of federal rules with the goal of eliminating those that stifle job creation and economic growth.

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“Our nation needs someone in the White House that will work to address America’s escalating energy challenges and provide the president with practical counsel,” said Karen Harbert, president and CEO of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Institute for 21st Century Energy. “Cutting across all the federal agencies with a hand in energy policy to ensure we can power our economic recovery should be a high priority for the administration.”

Industry lobbyist Scott Segal said Browner’s departure “may be part of a legitimate effort to pay careful attention to addressing some of the real regulatory obstacles in the way of job creation in the United States.”

EPA over the next two years is scheduled to tackle several regulations dealing with power plants and petroleum refineries. Segal said he’s concerned the rules “may undermine reliability and affordability of power, and place millions of energy, refining and manufacturing jobs at competitive disadvantage.”

“Infusing the White House with some new and fresh viewpoints makes sense,” he added.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0111/48098.html#ixzz1C3cAlxJO

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By Mark Hemingway--Washington Examiner
Created Jan 25 2011 - 8:04am
Energy and climate czar Carol Browner leaving White House


Carol Browner, the former Clinton EPA head and the Obama's top energy and climate czar, is leaving the White House:

Some of Obama’s allies on and off Capitol Hill who two years ago considered Browner the leader of a dream team on their issues said they were concerned about the latest shakeup on the eve of a State of the Union where the president is expected to move to the center.

“This does strike me as a quiet kill, so to speak,” said a House Democratic aide who works on energy and environmental issues, including the 2009 cap-and-trade bill. “If there were a sacrificial lamb, it could have been on health care, financial issues, on a whole number of other things. But it’s the climate czar that’s going down.

“I don’t know the exact circumstances of it, but the circumstantial evidence, I think the timing is frankly fairly frightening,” the staffer added.

The Obama administration is about to face a full on assault from Hill Republicans and some moderate Democrats over the EPA’s authority to regulate for greenhouse gases. Browner had experience dealing with an antagonistic GOP Congress while leading EPA under the Clinton administration. Environmentalists were hopeful she could have played the same role on Obama’s team.

As a sop to business, Browner's departure is mostly a matter of symbolism. Obama's going to have to do a lot more than get rid of Browner -- he's going to have to muzzle an overeager EPA. Further, Obama's recent selection of General Electric CEO Jeffrey Immelt to head the President's Council on Jobs and Competitiveness suggests business as usual, given G.E.'s status as an eco-subsidy suckler and one of the biggest lobbying powerhouses in Washington.

(http://washingtonexaminer.com)

[northoftheborder]

1. This is not a good sign for the environment, at all.