Editorial: Whose agenda matters most?

Thursday, Dec. 6, 2007 | 7:11 a.m.

As the Bush administration enters its final year, business interests are pressing for last-minute rule changes that could weaken important regulatory safeguards.

As noted in a recent story by the New York Times, there typically is increased activity in making changes to regulations during an administration's last months, but lobbyists for industry are being especially aggressive as President Bush's second term nears its end.

Business interests are pushing for rules that would, among other things, increase the maximum number of hours truckers can drive, add restrictions on family and medical leave for the nation's workers and weaken the air pollution controls on coal-fired power plants and the dumping restrictions on coal mining operations.

Those representing business interests aren't shy about acknowledging why they are pushing the Bush administration so hard - they worry about the tandem of a Democratic White House and Congress. Randel Johnson, vice president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, told the Times he is adding staff and pushing hard for new restrictions on the federally mandated family leave policy "before the next election" because "the next White House may be less hospitable to our position."

And it is no surprise that the Bush administration, with its anti-government agenda, is considered more amenable to rules and regulations that favor business interests than those that protect consumers and workers' rights. The net result may be sweeping last-minute rule changes that will undermine the health, safety and welfare of everyday Americans.