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Earthjustice
Vice President of Litigation for Healthy Communities at the environmental law group Earthjustice; former senior advisor to the administrator for Environmental Justice at the Environmental Protection Agency
PROFILE
Lisa Garcia
Guest
FROM Lisa Garcia
To the Point
Public Health and Public Accountability The Environmental Protection Agency was established during the Nixon Administration 45 years ago to protect human health and the environment, but recent cases from Michigan to West Virginia to California have raised questions about whether it's up to the job. It's accused of dragging its feet and failing to warn the public about poisoned water supplies and massive emissions of greenhouse gases. Does it lack authority, resources and leadership -- or simple competence?
To the Point
Coal, Clean Air and Presidential Power Mercury, which damages the brains and nervous systems of children from the time they're in the womb, is just one of the toxic pollutants from coal-fired power plants. New EPA regulations would require high-tech scrubbers to limit emissions. Arguments before the US Supreme Court today pitted the coal industry against the Environmental Protection Agency. Twenty states joined the opposition to power-plant regulation, while 17 other states said it's needed. But does the Clean Air Act require the agency to balance the potential health benefits against the cost of the technology? Did the justices provide any clues about rulings to come on Obamacare and actions against climate change?
Recommended
To the Point
White House budget proposal slashes and burns President Trump's first budget request is considered dead on arrival in Congress — a familiar development in Capitol Hill. We hear what it reveals about the priorities of the new administration. What's likely to die… and what might survive?
To the Point
Trump's 'America First' goes missing abroad In the Middle East, President Trump is changing some policies of the Obama Administration—and reversing his own campaign attacks on Islam as a religion that "hates us." We hear about his visit to Saudi Arabia and what's at stake for the rest of his foreign excursion.
To the Point
Trump's new look at civil rights and global warming President Trump is reportedly ready to pull the US out of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change. We look at the possible consequences. On the second half of the program, we hear about cuts in Obama-Era civil rights programs called for by the Trump Administration's first budget plan.