The LuLac Edition #3771, May 2nd, 2018

WRITE ON WEDNESDAY

Our “Write On Wednesday” logo.

This week we turn to a The Times Leader newspaper to give you a local view on the Trump administration and the impact they have had on Corporate America. A very interesting read. Please pay special attention to the issues on the environment that the writer brings to the fore.

TRUMP OPENING THE DOORS TO CORPORATE INTERESTS

President Donald Trump has claimed that he will “drain the swamp,” which seemingly represents a crusade against well-funded special interests that seek to advance their own greedy agendas.
But given the current political climate of deregulation, the opposite of this has been happening. The doors are being swung open for corporate interests to pursue profit in the absence of regulations that have been put into place to protect people and the environment.
There is no better example of this sad irony than Scott Pruitt, Trump’s appointee to head the Environmental Protection Agency.
Pruitt has no academic background in environmental science, biology or anything else that would support his credibility as the leading protector of the environment. To the contrary, Pruitt has a long history of opposing environmental regulations in order to advance the cause of industries that are responsible for pollution. He is the absolute worst person to head the EPA.
Make no mistake, the installation of Pruitt as director of the EPA was the result of his being recommended for the position by the Republican Party. This is the same political party that helped usher in the current era of opioid addiction. Legislation sponsored by Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Marino was designed to deregulate the pharmaceutical industry.
Republicans have spent the past 50 years arguing against the government’s rightful role as a regulator. The characterization of deregulation as the draining of a “swamp” is completely warped reasoning. If the swamp needs to be drained, then at very least the void should not be filled with sewage. And, by the way, an actual swamp where the quality of the water is protected serves a vital environmental role within the chain of living things here on Earth.
David Wasilewski
Hunlock Creek