Today, April 22, represents the 40th Anniversary of Earth Day, and later that year, the signing into law of the Environmental Protection Agency by President Richard Nixon!
Nixon proved to be quite a surprise! His Secretary of the Interior, Walter Hickel, former Governor of Alaska, proved to be one of the very best Interior Secretaries in American history! Nixon, himself, was easily the best environmental Republican President other than Theodore Roosevelt. Nixon cannot be given enough credit for what he did on this issue, despite many other negatives that can be visited on this controversial President.
We were fortunate that we had President Jimmy Carter further promote the environment during his administration, and President Bill Clinton as well, whose Vice President, Al Gore, pushed him in the direction of great environmental action.
Unfortunately, however, we had President Ronald Reagan compile the worst environmental record of any President; his successor, George H. W. Bush, only slightly better; and George W. Bush compiled the second worst environmental record behind Reagan! 🙁
Thankfully, President Barack Obama is cooperating in many ways on the issue of the environment, and recognizing the reality of climate change and global warming, while sadly, very few Republicans, and none of the conservative talk show hosts are doing anything to deal with this issue, other than to denounce, deny, lie, deceive, and fabricate the concept that we need not be concerned about the environment!
That is the reason why those who believe in the significance of the environmental movement MUST continue to fight the good fight for the future of our planet! But let’s celebrate Earth Day and acknowledge the role of Richard Nixon on this special day!
The 1 to 5 mile wide oil slick now in the Gulf of Mexico might be a warning that Obama’s stand on oil “exploration” is not the right approach. The same can be said for his views on nuclear power plants. Environmentalists are not happy about either idea. We need to be working on and encouraging alternative forms of energy, as well as conservation.