Bush’s EPA: Credible Science? No Thank You
Proving once again that when it comes to his administration the science is out, officials at the EPA removed Deborah Rice from her position as chair of a panel charged with investigating the safety of a flame retardant, known as deca, widely used in electronics.
Rice was removed at the behest of the American Chemistry Council, an industry lobbying group, for supposed conflicts of interest. Mrs. Rice apparently made the mistake of advocating good science over corporate profits - heresy in the Bush administration.
Nevermind that EPA Assistant Manager George Gray stated in a letter that there was no evidence of bias on Rice’s part. She was removed from her chair position anyway.
"EPA documents show that Rice’s comments while serving on the panel focused on technical, scientific issues. For example, she advised the EPA to consider the cumulative effects of not just deca, but chemicals with similar neurological effects."
Unlike 17 other EPA panelists formerly funded or employed by the chemical industry, Deborah Rice, formerly an award-winning EPA scientist, made the mistake of not rubberstamping the EPA’s seal of approval to protect corporate profit margins. She actually thought decisions should be made on the basis of credible scientific evidence. Under any other administration she would have been correct, but not under the Bush administration.
In the Bush administration, whose motto is ‘In Mammon We Trust’, public health and safety take a back seat to corporate profit and stockholder dividends. Who cares if a chemical substance used in consumer products causes cancer or neurological damage? If it’s good for the corporate bottom line then it’s good for America!