Obama Nominates Top Polluter Lawyer To Enforce Environmental Law

[brentspeak]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/05/15/obama-nominates-top-pollu_n_204120.html

Think Progress (via Huffington Post):

President Barack Obama has nominated a lawyer for the nation's largest toxic polluters to run the enforcement of the nation's environmental laws. On Tuesday, Obama "announced his intent to nominate" Ignacia S. Moreno to be Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division in the Department of Justice. Moreno, general counsel for that department during the Clinton administration, is now the corporate environmental counsel for General Electric, "America's #1 Superfund Polluter":

Some of the Huff Post reader responses make for sobering reading.

[Muttocracy]

1. hmmm, GE's PCB cleanup of Hudson, to be overseen by EPA, just started

:tinfoilhat:

[NRaleighLiberal]

2. "Politics" in general seems like a piss poor way to run a country effectively.

Perhaps it has always been like this...but that doesn't make it good.

[radiclib]

3. Brilliant!

This move is so cagey it makes the Gregg nomination pale by comparison. Our Prez is so strategically sophisticated he can't even figure himself out! I stand in awe!

[QC]

4. He's playing 58,000-dimensional chess, ten quadrillion moves ahead of his opponents,

who are just sitting there vainly flogging their withered puds!

Sheer genius!

[villager]

9. It only *seems* like his administration is selling out the environment again!

n/t

[vaberella]

12. Read post #10. There's nothing so far in her background that warrants the reactions on this thread.

This is why I wanted to get more information before I penalize.

[IndianaGreen]

15. LMAO

Kinda of the old "keep the powder dry" excuse by the forum apologists.

:rofl:

[QC]

16. Our party leaders have the driest powder on earth! n/t

[dflprincess]

5. If you can't trust those who caused the problem to fix the problem

who can you trust? :sarcasm:

Perhaps he's trying to teach them responibility.

[tabatha]

6. Someone made this comment on Huff Post

More change we can bereave in?

But this is a good article:

http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/hnba-supports-nomination-of-seasoned,823598.shtml

[vaberella]

7. I have to see how this plays out. Can anyone point out questionable litigation on her part?!

I strong on environmental issues and I'm not too happy about this. On the other spectrum, so far I haven't seen any litigation she's done that is call for serious concern; until then I can't decide. Other than that, her resume seems impressive, as well as her experience in the field.

[grantcart]

10. Hispanic Bar Association strongly endorses Moreno for Assistant Attorney General for the Environment

http://www.sunherald.com/prnewswire/story/1344102.html


WASHINGTON, May 13 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Hispanic National Bar Association (HNBA) applauds President Obama's decision to nominate Ignacia S. Moreno as Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division ("Division") of the U.S. Department of Justice. Ms. Moreno has stellar academic and professional credentials, a proven commitment to the environment, and a long record of public and community service. When nominated and confirmed, she will be the first Hispanic woman to serve as an Assistant Attorney General in recent history.


"I have known Ms. Moreno for about fifteen years," said Ramona E. Romero, President of the HNBA, "and can personally attest to her brilliance, integrity, commitment to environmental enforcement, and record of service to the Hispanic community. President Obama could not have made a better choice." Ms. Moreno is a leading practitioner in the field of environmental and natural resources law. During the Clinton Administration, she served with distinction in the Division for over six years. As Counsel to the Assistant Attorney General for the Division, she participated in the management of the Division, led significant domestic and international environmental enforcement initiatives, expanded and managed the Division's international program, handled litigation, and provided advice and counsel to the Assistant Attorney General on a wide variety of matters. Her prior experience with the Division will allow her to be an informed and integral part of the Department of Justice from day one.

Ms. Moreno's professional record also includes two achievements often denied to women of color -- partnership at an important law firm and service as a senior environmental lawyer at a Fortune 50 company. Alejandra Y. Castillo, Co-Chair of the HNBA's Executive Endorsements Committee, noted that Ms. Moreno is "not only a leading expert in the field of environmental law, but she is also one of a small number of attorneys of color in this substantive area that impacts the Latino community and all Americans."

The HNBA is an incorporated, not-for-profit, national membership organization that represents the interests of the more than 100,000 attorneys, judges, law professors, legal assistants, and law students of Hispanic descent in the United States, its territories and Puerto Rico. Through its Presidential Appointments Project, the HNBA has gathered and provided the White House with numerous resumes of Latino lawyers interested in serving in the Administration. For more information about the HNBA and its Appointments Project, please visit www.hnba.com.

I guess we will have to put aside this endorsement of her and simply find her guilty by association.

[vaberella]

11. See this is this kind of shit that pisses me off.

The article itself gave no information. From what I read of her resume from bits and pieces of articles, she had commendable background. The article he OP mentioned gave NO PROOF that Ms. Moreno was actually anti environment and did anything that would warrant her nomination as controversial. This is why I specifically asked for litigation in which she actually worked to get the polluters off. I need to see how controversial she is, and apparently as you say...this is all guilt by association. That crap didn't work on O during the primaries.

Ugh...scraps in an article and automatically O is making bad choices. I've never seen such Harpies that seem to be looking for ways to target and attack the Pres.

[Hanse]

8. And this is a problem because?

Honestly, how childish does a person have to be to take issue with this?

[IndianaGreen]

13. Because Moreno will go back to work for her polluting masters after her stint

in the Obama Administration. She ain't going to bite the hand of the polluters.

[Hanse]

20. That's dumb.

That's like saying defense attorneys shouldn't work for the Justice Department because they help criminals.

You should be old enough to know better.

[IndianaGreen]

14. NY Times: DOJ nominee's industry experience a worry for some

DOJ nominee's industry experience a worry for some

By ROBIN BRAVENDER, Greenwire
Published: May 15, 2009

Prior to joining GE in 2006, Moreno worked at the Washington law firm Spriggs & Hollingsworth, where she specialized in environmental and mass tort litigation. She also worked for DOJ during the Clinton administration, serving as special assistant and principal counsel to the assistant attorney general for the environment division. She began her career at Hogan & Hartson LLP, where she practiced with the firm's environmental and litigation groups.

"There's a huge amount of concern circulating through the environmental community" about Moreno's nomination, said Alex Matthiessen, president of the New York-based environmental group Riverkeeper.

"She's essentially moving to the opposite side of the issue with very little experience as an environmental law enforcer," he said. Although she worked in DOJ's environment division from 1994 until 2001, "she seemed to have a fairly minor role in the division," he added.

Matthiessen, whose group focuses on cleaning up pollution in the Hudson River, said he was particularly troubled by Moreno's tenure as counsel to GE, whose plants discharged as much as 1.3 million pounds of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) into the Hudson River in New York between 1947 and 1977. GE is accused of dragging its feet for years to avoid the costly cleanup.

PCBs are considered probable human carcinogens and are linked to adverse health effects including low birth weight, thyroid disease and other disorders, according to EPA.

http://www.nytimes.com/gwire/2009/05/15/15greenwire-doj-nominees-industry-experience-a-worry-for-s-12208.html

[JohnWxy]

17. NOW wait a minute. Isn't that rather a blatant conflict of interest which rather severely impairs

Moreno in the performance of the job?

SHit!

Like THIS is the best he could do???

[PurityOfEssence]

18. No wonder he has a habit of saying nice things about Reagan

Watt's the problem?

[freddie mertz]

19. It is another disappointing choice...

And they ARE starting to add up.

I blame Rahm, which is what I tend to do in these situations.

Picking him was the first inkling we had of this trend.

Oh well, "Meet the New Boss" as the song goes...


:-( :puke: :wtf: :thumbsdown: :scared: