environmental enforcement

Perspective on trade in the Obama Administration

by Fran Smith on November 6, 2008

in International, Politics as Usual, Trade

During the presidential primaries and in the campaigns, there was a lot of rhetoric about the need for “fair” trade instead of free trade. Candidates were in a populist mode, catering to critical manufacturing states that have lost jobs and serving up trade as the villain.

Now that Senator Barack Obama is the President-elect, there is renewed speculation on what path his administration will take on international trade. Will he make good on his campaign rhetoric that echoed the Democratic platform’s call for renegotiation of trade agreements to include even more stringent labor and environmental standards? Will he continue to hold up pending trade agreements with close U.S. allies? Will he embrace isolationism and protectionism or adapt to geopolitical realities?

In a new C:\Spin publication, I provide some perspective on the outlook for trade in the Obama Administration. I opine that President Obama will face enormous pressure to make good on some of his campaign promises on trade.  But, with his top-notch economic advisers, he may pull back from drastic anti-trade actions that would harm the fragile economy and alienate U.S. allies and trading partners.

What Obama Means for Environmental Policy

by Iain Murray on November 5, 2008 · 1 comment

in Energy, Environment, Global Warming

My colleagues will be providing some commentary on what an Obama presidency means, realistically, for global warming policy. Here, I’m going to comment on environmental policy more generally.

First, I suspect that we will see the EPA Administrator raised to cabinet rank. With this will come a more radical and assertive EPA. This should not be surprising. Even within this Administration, the EPA has been flexing its muscles. The issuance of the Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on regulating greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act was accompanied by reactions from other government departments about how terrible the rules would be, rather than going through the usual process of dealing with these difficulties internally and watering down the rule. Given that Obama has said he will want the EPA, absent Congressional action, to go ahead with its plans, this may be an indication that EPA will become an agency that, in most cases, is primus inter pares.
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