Democrats in the House have proposed rule changes which they claim will promote transparency and accountability in Congress. If you believe that, I’ve got some swamp land you might be interested in.
These proposed rule changes are, in fact, the first step toward legislative priorities to pass the New Green Deal. Rep. Tom Cole of Oklahoma described the rule changes as some of the harshest he’s experienced during his time in Congress. “Democratic leadership is suppressing minority rights and paving the way for the Green New Deal by intentionally removing budgetary checks that have been in place for over a decade.”
If you’re not inclined to believe that left-wing Democrats are headed toward passage of the New Green Deal, just check out Biden’s EPA review team – all lawyers and environmental activists.
Team leader will be Patrice Lumumba Simms, currently Vice President of Litigation for Healthy Communities at EarthJustice. For those not familiar with EarthJustice, they call themselves the “backbone for the environmental movement,” who work with communities “disproportionally” impacted by environmental pollution and climate change. Simms former employers include Howard University Law School, the Environment and Natural Resource Division of the Justice Department, the EPA Office of General Council, and the EPA’s Environment Appeal Board.
Amanda Aguirre is another environmentalist that has built a career around community organizing, coalition building, policy advocacy, political campaigns and grassroots organizing. She is currently employed at Blue Crab Strategies which refers to themselves as a “boutique consulting firm maximizing change,” focused on “improving lives and the planet.”
The third person on the Biden team is Ann Dunkin, Chief Technology Officer for State and Local Government at Dell Technologies. Before joining Dell she worked as Chief Information Officer of Santa Clara, California and Chief Information Officer for the EPA during the Obama administration. She also served in senior leadership positions for the Palo Alto Unified School District and Hewlett Packard.
Another Biden team member will be Matt Fritz, Director of Administration for the Latham & Watkins D.C. Law Firm, headquartered in Los Angeles. Latham & Watkins is an international law firm specializing in activism, and intellectual property litigation. Fritz was Chief of Staff for the EPA between 2013-2016 and served as Director of Communication for the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection between 2000-2004.
The Fifth volunteer team member is Lisa Garcia from Grist Magazine, an admitted environmental justice advocate who led the EPA’s environmental-justice work during the Obama administration as the program director for its growing solutions lab, Fix. Grist is a nonprofit media organization for people who want a “planet that doesn’t burn and a future that doesn’t suck.” At Fix Garcia worked to ”identify and celebrate emerging climate and justice leaders”, and connecting them to each other so their work would have a deeper impact.
Then there is Cynthia Giles, a Guest Fellow at Harvard Law School’s Environmental and Energy Law program. Former jobs include Assistant Administrator for Enforcement and Compliance at EPA, Assistant US Attorney in Philadelphia, led the water protection program for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, served as the Director of Enforcement Coordination for EPA Region 3, and before returning to EPA, was the Director of the Conservation Law Foundation’s Advocacy Center in Rhode Island, where she advocated for laws and policies to combat climate change and promote clean energy.
Holy Shades of Green Batman – Looks like the entire U.S. will become California.
Source: President-Elect Biden Loads Up on Lawyers by Gary Baise, Jefferson Policy Journal
