Tell the White House Chief of Staff to Protect Public Health

In early September, President Obama broke his promise to set a science-based standard for ground-level ozone. Ozone pollution is a primary component of smog and can exacerbate serious lung diseases such as asthma. Ozone pollution and its health effects will likely get worse in a warming world.

It’s no secret that the White House and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have been under incredible pressure from the coal and oil industries to release weak standards that will do little to nothing to protect our health and environment.

Is the Obama administration putting industry interests ahead of the health of ordinary Americans?

According to a Wall Street Journal article, White House Chief of Staff Bill Daley, a former Wall Street executive, was brought into the White House in January partly to improve frayed relations with the business community.

The same article reported that at a White House meeting where environmental and health advocates described a poll showing that a majority of Americans support EPA standards to protect our health, Daley replied, "I don't give a [expletive] about the poll."

Well, Mr. Daley, as the president’s chief of staff, maybe you should care more about the concerns of ordinary Americans. Nearly 70 percent of Americans want to see the EPA do its job to protect our health and environment from global warming and other harmful pollutants.

Playing kick the can down the road with EPA standards is a dangerous game. The longer we wait, the more at risk we are from climate change.

Tell White House Chief of Staff Bill Daley that you expect the president to stand firm in the face of industry pressure and meet his responsibility to protect the public's health and our environment from the dangerous effects of global warming.

Take Action Today!

Sincerely,

Chrissy Elles
National Field Organizer
UCS Climate & Energy Program

The Union of Concerned Scientists is the leading U.S. science-based nonprofit organization working for a healthy environment and a safer world. Founded in 1969, UCS is headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and also has offices in Berkeley, Chicago and Washington, D.C. To subscribe or visit go to:  http://www.ucsusa.org