The E.P.A. has said that the action would close a loophole that in the last two years permitted the destruction of 20,000 acres of wetlands and the channeling of 150 miles of streams without environmental review. . . . The statement put Mr. Bush on record in support of the decision, but may have also been intended as a more particular endorsement of Mrs. Whitman, who had been on the losing end of an internal administration debate last month on the direction of global-warming policy. That will undoubtedly upset some elements of the GOP more than the wetlands business. Bush named four openly gay people to help with his transition, and aides are interviewing more than a dozen for key jobs. Bush has moved to reverse some of former president Bill Clinton's policies on abortion, labor and the environment, but he has left in place a 1998 order banning discrimination against gays in 1.7 million federal civil service jobs.
Some social conservatives are frustrated.
During the campaign, Bush hesitated even to meet with the Log Cabin Republicans, saying that would be divisive. But that was then. Remember that two of the most important voting groups, women and suburbanites, care about wilderness areas and clean air and clean water. And don't forget that there's a connection between environmental issues and health issues. It doesn't help the administration any that Earth Day is Sunday.