Josh needs clean air to survive, and he's doing what he can to make sure he gets it. Indeed, Governor Bush has neglected Texas's air crisis in favor of the interests of the corporations that fund his campaigns, environmentalists contend. To be sure, Governor Bush isn't blamed for causing the crisis. But he is faulted for failing to alleviate it. For years, the state's air quality has been among the worst in the nation.
Environmentalists cite a litany of examples of how Texas's air has deteriorated.
Four other Texas cities verge on violating federal health standards, according to the Environmental Defense Fund. The Houston area reported the worst smog in the country in the summer of 1999, according to Dr. Neil Carman of the Sierra Club. The city has just surpassed Los Angeles as the country's smoggiest place to live, according to the Los Angeles Times . While effective regulations have made breathing easier in Los Angeles, Carman says, Houston is a glaring example of how Governor Bush has failed to clean his state's fouled air. The roots of the grandfathered facility problem date back to 1971, when the Clean Air Act was passed.