Last week, the Center for American Progress, a progressive think tank, released a report titled, "Safeguarding the American People: The Progressive Vision vs. the Bush Record."

The report shows how President Bush's anti-government and pro-business view points have manifested themselves in the forms of weakened public protections, poor enforcement of federal law, and a declining investment in America's needs. In pursuit of this ideology, the Bush administration has seemingly left no stone unturned, harming the environment, consumer safety, workplace safety, national infrastructure and financial protections.

In identifying a progressive vision, the report touches upon the need for better data, restoring the idea of the responsibility of government, transparency in decision-making, and holding government accountable for results.

Read the report here.

Yesterday, a U.S. district court ruled the White House has violated federal law by not preparing and releasing a statutorily-mandated report on climate change. The Global Change Research Act of 1990 requires presidential administrations to assess the latest research and the potential impact of climate change "On a periodic basis (not less frequently than every 4 years)." The last report was released by the Clinton administration in 2000.

In arguments, the White House resorted to its usual defense — that the law only applies when it's convenient or jibes with President Bush's policy. The plaintiffs (the Center for Biological Diversity, Friends of the Earth and Greenpeace) hailed the decision as a rebuke of the White House's anti-climate-change research views. The ruling orders the White House to release a new report by March.

The decision comes on the heels of a recent Office of Management and Budget/ Office of Science and Technology Policy memo which outlines the research and development priorities of the administration. The memo is chock-full of references to climate science and renewable energy.

Of course, given the White House had to be forced by a federal court just to write a report on climate change, we should not take this as a sign of progress. Bush wants R&D on his terms. The memo promotes Bush's laughably modest goals of reductions in energy consumption and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions "cost-effectively."

The memo also calls for agencies to prioritize "eliminating scientific and technical barriers that limit the advancement of renewable, zero emission, and alternative energy sources." Reg•Watch thinks the biggest barrier to progressive energy policy won't be removed until Jan. 20, 2009.

Is President Bush becoming a conservationist? Today, Bush issued an executive order titled "Facilitation of Hunting Heritage and Wildlife Conservation." The order instructs federal agencies to, among other things, "Manage wildlife and wildlife habitats on public lands in a manner that expands and enhances hunting opportunities, including through the use of hunting in wildlife management planning."

Reg•Watch wonders what issue or problem this order is trying to address. Perhaps Bush was just inspired in the midst of his extended vacation in Crawford.

It is unclear whether the executive order will have an impact on the ability of Vice President Cheney to shoot people in the face.

Bloomberg News columnist Cindy Skrzycki today writes about the White House delay of a rule that would protect the North Atlantic right whale. Under Executive Order 12866, OMB's Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) has 90 days to review regulations before they are finalized. In consultation with the issuing agency (in this case, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) OIRA may extend the review period by 30 days.

NOAA submitted the whale protection rule on Feb. 20, 2007. Therefore, OIRA has exceeded the review period by almost two months, and there is no end in sight. An OMB spokesperson refused to comment on the progress of the rule, according to the article. (For more on the White House's role in delaying this rule, click here.)

Congress has taken notice of the delay. In two separate letters, three senators and six congressmen have written President Bush urging him to allow NOAA to finalize the rule. As the senators' letter points out, "The North Atlantic right whale is one of the world's most endangered marine mammals with approximately 350 whales alive today, and should accordingly be among the Administration's top conservation priorities."

Unfortunately, this is not the only case of the White House using delay to serve its anti-regulatory agenda. As of July 20 (the last time Reg•Watch did its research), nine percent of rules under review had exceeded the time limit. Congress should investigate further to stop this sneaky, underhanded tactic.

Read the congressmen's letter here.

Read the senators' letter here.

Be sure to check out the latest issue of our biweekly newsletter, The Watcher. Regulatory policy articles this time:

Toy Recalls Bring Attention to Commission's Inadequacies

OMB Manipulates Science in Cost-Benefit Analysis for Ozone Rule

Size Matters: Nanotechnologies Present New Challenges

Frank O'Donnell at the Blog for Clean Air has posted on the latest in a series of White House efforts to undermine EPA smog regulations. This time, it's the rule's cost-benefit analysis, wherein the White House Office of Management and Budget tries to underplay the benefits of the rule by attacking the scientific consensus that smog reduction saves lives.

Read the post from the Blog for Clean Air here: White House Tampers with EPA Smog Plan