The National Audubon Society and other environmental groups support S 1716, a more scientific version of the bill introduced into the U.S. Senate by Democrats Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein. Democrats have responded to the Republican's claim of environmental accomplishment. Miller appears to be correct. Other riders would slow down cleanup of PCB's in the Hudson River as well as other national rivers and lower funding to clean up abandoned industrial areas. Still other GOP riders would cut funding to the National Park Service, the Bureau of Land Management, and the Fish and Wildlife Service, subsidize more logging activity, and eliminate the Interior Columbia Basin Ecosystem Management Plan.
Democrats also have inconsistencies in their environmental records.
Rep. Vic Fazio, D- West Sacramento, recently authored a measure that would delay a ban on the pesticide methyl bromide and make a significant change in the Clean Air Act. Environmental groups criticized Fazio and the Clinton administration as hypocritical for attacking anti-environmental Republican riders but saying nothing about their own harmful legislation. Occasionally, the two parties work together to block bad legislation. It is clear that concerned citizens need to become more informed about how our elected representatives are performing. If you are interested in further information on this topic, the following sources may be of interest to you.