Trump Renominates Texas Climate Change Skeptic for Key Environmental Post

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump has renominated Kathleen Hartnett White, an ex-Texas regulator and climate change skeptic he had picked last year to lead the Council on Environmental Quality.Trump’s renomination of White Tuesday for the post was expected, but Democratic lawmakers had hoped that their efforts to keep her nomination from rolling over into 2018 automatically would make Trump re-think his choice.If confirmed, White would head the council that coordinates federal environmental efforts and ensures that agencies meet their obligations under the National Environmental Act.Sen. Tom Carper, the senior Democrat on the committee that oversees the EPA and environmental policy, led the effort to bounce her name back to the White House. Carper opposed her nomination, successfully removing her from the list of pending nominees still under consideration when the new session of Congress began this month.“Let’s start the new year off with a clean slate and allow President Trump the opportunity to nominate a leader for the Council on Environmental Quality who takes environmental laws and public health protections seriously,” Carper said last month.  Continue reading...