[CPEO-MEF] Utah Gov. Named As Chief Of EPA

[CPEO Moderator <cpeo@cpeo.org>]

THE WASHINGTON POST
Utah Gov. Named As Chief Of EPA
Nominee Wants Power Moved Out Of Washington
By Mike Allen and Dana Milbank
Tuesday, August 12, 2003; Page A01

AURORA, Colo., Aug. 11 -- President Bush today named Utah Gov. Mike
Leavitt (R) to head the Environmental Protection Agency, pledging that
the longtime advocate of state power would help to shift environmental
regulation out of Washington.

Leavitt, the nation's longest-serving governor, has fostered a
reputation for building consensus between conservationists and business.
But while the amiable Leavitt is well-liked, his selection as EPA chief
-- succeeding Christine Todd Whitman, who resigned in May -- did not
narrow the rift between environmental advocates and the Bush
administration.

Bush praised Leavitt's environmental record and said Leavitt "respects
the ability of state and local governments" and "rejects the old ways of
command and control from above."

White House officials wrestled for months over how to replace Whitman,
the former New Jersey governor. The administration had signaled strong
interest in Idaho Gov. Dirk Kempthorne (R), and today's announcement
surprised even some officials close to Bush's inner circle.

Ultimately, Bush and his aides calculated that Leavitt's low-key,
competent demeanor makes him the ideal choice to head an agency that
Bush would like to have a low profile.

One senior Republican official called Leavitt a "bureaucrat's
bureaucrat," who would keep the EPA out of the headlines.

This article can be viewed at:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A46698-2003Aug11.html

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