Attorneys general from 17 states (not including Kansas) filed a lawsuit today against the Environmental Protection Agency for not responding to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling last year that carbon dioxide is a pollutant under the Clean Air Act. The states want the EPA to act on regulating CO2 within 60 days. The lawsuit follows the EPA’s announcement last week that it was going to hold off on regulating CO2 and instead receive public comments — which many people interpreted as punting the issue to the next administration.
Hillary Clinton began a news conference Tuesday by somberly saying that she and Barack Obama “need to do something so that our party and our people can make the right decision.” That made some of the reporters think she might be about to drop out of the race. But it was actually an April Fools’ joke, as Clinton ended up challenging Obama to a bowling contest. “Chris Matthews looked totally like, ‘You mean I might actually be in the presence of real news?’” Clinton said of the MSNBC host, who was at the press conference. “It was fun.” And as it turns out, not only is Obama terrible at bowling (he scored only 37 when he bowled a few days ago), but Clinton apparently isn’t too bad. She told reporters later that she has her own ball and shoes, and used to bowl at Camp David.
While Democrats continue to fight among themselves, Republican John McCain is gaining ground in three states that have gone solidly blue in recent elections.
In New Jersey — a “big state†that Hillary Clinton points to as evidence she can win in November — McCain has pulled even with the two Democrats, according to a new Rasmussen poll. He’s leading Clinton 45 to 42 percent and Barack Obama 46 to 45 percent, with a 4-point margin of error — a statistical tie. Clinton has seen her double-digit lead over McCain in the state evaporate.
In Michigan, McCain also has a slight lead (again, a statistical tie) over both Democrats, and in Washington state, McCain is competitive with both: Obama leads him, 48 to 43 percent, while Clinton trails him, 46 to 43 percent.
Of course, McCain is getting a free ride at the moment, and his numbers could change dramatically once Democrats start training their fire on him rather than each other. But the polls should remind Democrats that McCain is making political hay while they bicker and feud.
“To hide their lack of any actual ideas about what to do, managers sometimes make a big show of rearranging the boxes and lines that say who reports to whom,†columnist Paul Krugman wrote. “You now understand the principle behind the Bush administration’s new proposal for financial reform: It’s all about creating the appearance of responding to the current crisis, without actually doing anything substantive.â€
The city of Mulvane’s stringlike annexations aimed at cashing in on future casino profits defy common sense. But they don’t merit legislative action, especially not retroactive action. As often as possible, land-use issues should be municipal and county issues. The frustration of state Rep. Vincent Wetta, D-Wellington, is understandable: He fought to get Sumner County into the casino game and fears Wellington will be passed over for more profitable sites to its north. The House went Wetta’s way Tuesday in passing his amendment aimed at stopping Mulvane’s stringlike annexations, but the Senate should ensure that the Legislature stays out of Sumner County’s fight.
Kudos to the Wichita City Council, which voted unanimously Tuesday to endorse a plan by the city-county Taskforce to End Chronic Homelessness that would create a new downtown homeless resource center as well as a “housing first†program.
Interim City Manager Ed Flentje called it a “moderate†plan and said the city, having created the homeless task force, “has some obligation to move this forward.â€
“This is a true commitment,†said Mayor Carl Brewer, noting that the action calls on city staff to work with Sedgwick County officials to develop a funding plan.
It’s encouraging that the city already has committed $60,000 in community development block grants to fund a staff position for the housing program.
No one is asking local government to foot the entire bill for the homelessness fight — but city and county officials need to do their fair share. Council member Jeff Longwell rightly said that “we’re going to see a cost benefit to tackling this problem.â€
Attorneys general from 17 states (not including Kansas) filed a lawsuit today against the Environmental Protection Agency for not responding to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling last year that carbon dioxide is a pollutant under the Clean Air Act. The states want the EPA to act on regulating CO2 within 60 days. The lawsuit follows the EPA’s announcement last week that it was going to hold off on regulating CO2 and instead receive public comments — which many people interpreted as punting the issue to the next administration.
