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Christie Whitman Resigns As Environmental Chief
By AP from the Wall Street Journal on the Web, May 21, 2003
WASHINGTON -- Christine Todd Whitman, often at odds with the Bush White
House over environmental issues and a lightning rod for the administration's
critics, resigned on Wednesday as head of the Environmental Protection Agency.
Ms. Whitman said in a letter to President Bush that she was leaving to spend
time with family.
"As rewarding as the past two-and-a-half years have been for me
professionally, it is time to return to my home and husband in New Jersey, which
I love just as you do your home state of Texas," she wrote Mr. Bush.
With Ms. Whitman's departure as EPA administrator, Mr. Bush loses one of the
most prominent women in his cabinet -- a moderate former New Jersey governor
selected by the president to help soften his image as a political conservative,
particularly on environmental issues.
Ms. Whitman had a history of clashing with the White House, starting with the
president's abrupt decision to withdraw from the international global warming
treaty. She had been the administration's point person in rolling back
environmental protections initiated by previous administrations.
As his re-election campaign gears up, Mr. Bush's senior staff and advisers
consider the next few months as optimum time to leave the government; otherwise,
they will be expected to remain aboard until after the 2004 election. White
House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer announced on Monday that he will resign in
July.
Mr. Bush will be under pressure to replace Ms. Whitman with a nominee who
will be acceptable to his Republican supporters without alienating swing voters
who tend to be wary of Republicans on the environment.
Ms. Whitman, a former New Jersey governor, said her resignation is effective
June 27. She met with Mr. Bush at the White House on Tuesday afternoon to inform
him of her decision, the agency said.
Touts EPA's 'Enviable Record'
Ms. Whitman, in her letter, defended the administration's environmental
policies, which have been under attack by environmentalists as a series of
rollbacks in protecting the nation's air, water and land.
"Our work has been guided by the strong belief that environmental protection
and economic prosperity can and must go hand-in-hand," she wrote. "The EPA has
built an enviable record of success that will result in significant improvements
to the state of our nation's treasured environment."
She pointed to initiatives to reduce pollution from off-road diesel engines,
a push to cut pollution from school buses and "our aggressive and effective
efforts to enforce the nation's environmental laws."
She said she was proud of the EPA work under her leadership.
Ms. Whitman, 56 years old, joined the administration after seven years as
governor of New Jersey, where she made preservation a priority, but never
managed to convince environmentalists she was one of them.
Critics said that in the name of attracting businesses, she compromised
water-pollution protections and cut spending for state offices that prosecute
environmental abuses by industry. Ms. Whitman, an avid mountain biker and skier,
insisted that she retained needed protections while eliminating red tape.
At Odds Early On
When the Bush administration took office, Ms. Whitman had only the briefest
honeymoon. Within the first three months, she had upset industry executives and
conservationists, disappointed moderates who like her and angered conservatives
who don't.
The conservation group Friends of the Earth wasted little time in urging her
to resign, saying that Mr. Bush's decisions on the environment had undermined
her credibility. But Ms. Whitman stood steadfastly behind Mr. Bush, even when
their own disagreements became public.
As she did while New Jersey governor, Ms. Whitman frequently hit the road for
official as well as political trips around the country. But she said her goal
was to spend weekends, when possible, back home in New Jersey. "It's important
for my sanity," she said.
Submitted by:
Messrs. John Crowell Campbell & Richard John Harrison, Co-Founders &
Sponsors of Gay & Lesbian Political Action & Support Group (GayPASG@att.net),
& the Task Force for Same-Sex Marriage. Visit www.gaypasg.org
for mission statements. Edward G. Martone, Political Advisor
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