The Obama administration is planning to use the Environmental Protection Agency’s finding the public health is endangered by carbon dioxide emissions which it can therefore regulate as a sledgehammer to get Congress to pass cap-and-trade legislation. If you don’t pass a bill, the threat is, EPA will impose much harsher regulation than you would like.

That threat, however, is at least somewhat undercut by this memorandum from the Office of Management and Budget, labeled “DELIBERATIVE—ATTORNEY CLIENT PRIVILEGE” which has made its way into the public domain. The memorandum is studded with acronyms which may puzzle some readers, but it makes a strong argument that the EPA finding is shoddy and may be indefensible in court. 

   

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