Environmental groups hit Republican lawmakers' attacks on EPA
by Bruce Alpert - Times-Picayune (excerpt)

WASHINGTON -- Environmental groups are hitting back at some Louisiana Republicans lawmakers and others who are using the controversial remarks of a former Environmental Protection Agency official to accuse the agency of radical regulatory policies. The official, Al Armendariz, who oversaw EPA's Region 6 office in Dallas, responsible for overseeing enforcement in five states, including Louisiana, resigned Tuesday. The resignation came after an Oklahoma senator released a video from a 2010 speech in which he suggested his approach to forcing compliance of environmental regulations was to crucify violators to set an example. Rep. Steve Scalise, R-La, applauded his resignation, but said it wasn't enough. "This latest scandal by the EPA is just the tip of the iceberg in the Obama Administration's anti-business attitude," Scalise said. "While I applaud EPA Region 6 Administrator Armendariz's resignation, it does nothing to stop the radical rules and regulations still being pushed by President Obama." Reps. Jeff Landry, R-New Iberia, and John Fleming, R-Minden, made similar comments.