E-M:/ Bush's "burrowing-in" appointments

[Larry Nooden <ldnum@umich.edu>]

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Enviro-Mich message from Larry Nooden <ldnum@umich.edu>
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> From the AAAS Policy Alert - November 26, 2008

"The Washington Post reported last weekend that a number of Bush 
Administration political appointees had gained high-level civil service 
positions in federal science agencies in recent weeks. The practice, known 
as "burrowing," is not uncommon in the last days of an administration. 
Among the examples cited was a 30-year-old political appointee at the 
Department of Energy without any scientific background who was given a 
position at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) 
where "he will work on 'space-based science using satellites for 
geostationary and meteorological data.'" AAAS President James McCarthy, 
quoted at length in the article, was strongly critical of such 
"burrowing-in" appointments."

The full article:
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/11/21/AR2008112103359.html>

This practice of appointing underqualified or even incompetent ideologues 
has been especially  extensively by the Bush Admin, but this seems to be 
special surge to dumb down and hollow out government.  Environmental 
agencies seem to prime targets.



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