GOP Rep.-Elect Bill Flores: House Republicans Want To Get EPA To 'Shut Down On These Bunny Trails'

UPDATE: An earlier version of this post misquoted Congressman Flores. The title and his comments have since been updated.

House Republicans haven't been shy about expressing their desire to cripple or sever the government's hand in environmental issues, but an incoming GOP congressman recently upped the ante, claiming that his party's House caucus wants to get the EPA to "shut down on these bunny trails."

Here's what Rep. Bill Flores (R-Texas) said on a recent internet radio program (via ThinkProgress):

FLORES: Absolutely, that's one of the reasons I wanted to get on Natural Resources is it puts me in the position, not my full jurisdiction over the EPA but I do have some jurisdiction there. I can tell you the House as a whole, the Republicans in the House as a whole want to get the EPA shut down on these bunny trails that's going down that are throwing people out of work -- particularly the way it's abusing Texas. And I think that Texas can count on getting some relief from the EPA within the first few months of this Congress because they really have gone overboard.

The GOP's lack of concern for environmental issues, especially as they might restrict polluters' profits or elicit penalties, has been well documented. Early this month, Republicans leaders disbanded the Select Committee on Global Warming, a non-legislative panel that was meant to discuss avenues to address climate change science, something that only a small portion of House Republicans believe in.

While including a pledge to defund the EPA on campaign platforms was not uncommon this election season, those promises to lay siege to the agency over impending climate-change regulations recently became a mainstay for legislators battling for chair of the House Appropriations Committee. A recent federal court ruling, however, ensured that the pollution restrictions will be allowed to continue, for the moment at least.

Environmentalists may have also been somewhat relieved this month when GOP leadership announced that Rep. Fred Upton (R-Mich.) would be the next chairman of the House Energy & Commerce Committee. Though he beat out two vocal climate change opponents in Reps. Joe Barton of Texas and John Shimkus of Illinois, Upton is reportedly shifting to the right on environmental issues in order to fall in line with his party.

Rep. Ralph Hall (R-Texas), incoming chairman of the House Committee on Science and Technology and Rep. Doc Hastings (R-Wash.), who will soon head the House Natural Resources -- soon to be two of the key pilots of environmental policy -- have more pro-energy industry records, however, which are likely to come at the expense of environmental causes.

LISTEN (via ThinkProgress):

Comments

[Ed Hino]

08:28 PM on 12/28/2010

hat bill flores is a millonare oil man who defeated chet edwards and made texas a majority red state he represents central texas ,he out spent chet edwards i belie iread inthe dallas morning news he,s bad news for bama and the epa

[rtb61]

09:51 PM on 12/25/2010

E.P.A soon to be the Environmental Pollution Agency, assisting business in ways to get away with polluting the environment.
Pollute a town and kill hundreds of residents including children, no problem, let the Environmental Pollution Agency.produce reports detailing the naturally toxic nature of the environment and it's the people's own fault for moving there.
Want to know how to dump thousands of gallons of toxic chemicals into a river with out people seeing it, contact the Environmental Pollution Agency, all those dead fish are normal the water is just a little warmer than normal.
The chemicals you are burying next to a school causing deformities in children, no problem, have the Environmental Pollution Agency explain how that is just normal evolution, mutations always occur.
The Republican EPA, creating a legacy that will have your grandchildren paying the price with their lives.

[hotintexas]

10:17 AM on 12/25/2010

MERRY CHRISTMAS....HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

[hotintexas]

10:16 AM on 12/25/2010

Texas does not believe the EPS has a right to tell them to clean up their act.
They believe they are above the law here, and that global warming is a scam, perpetuated against the oil and coal companies because the Feds want more control over the states.
Texas REPUBLICAN politicians have no NO business dealing with anything related to the safety, sanctity or security of our world. The Texas Dems are not a lot better, much to my dismay.
They seem to be Dems for elections and murph into Reps when they get elected. I do believe it is either in the sun or the water that people down here do not, will not see what a horrible mess these politicians have us in.
What world are they going to live in?

[dragonmaster]

03:47 PM on 12/23/2010

The Anti science dirty polluters in the GOP will have their demise- as the number of climate related disaster rises- never in modern human history has greed, deceit and disregard for the planets environment and the human condition been disregarded by such Ayn Rand zealots protecting their corrupt economic system.

[GuyRC]

03:08 PM on 12/22/2010

That was a Faux interview if I ever heard one. Texas had clean air laws before the EPA, ha! What they probably had were laws that said if it kills people more that a mile away you need to build a taller stack. Bunny trails are destroying jobs in Texas? What a bumpkin.

[DRaymond]

10:09 PM on 12/21/2010

I searched several pages of comments to see if someboyd had a better clue than me as to what he meant by these bunny trails only to discover that I am not at all alone in being completely confused as to what he is actually talking about.

[JeanRR]

02:42 PM on 12/24/2010

Don't feel alone. He doesn't know what he is taking about either.

[Genders]

07:47 PM on 12/21/2010

It's just a shame the the USA is not following the old USSR's environmental policies, ie none. Then the USA would have all the incredible pollution problem s that have crippled the former soviet block.

[USCOASTGUARDVET]

07:45 PM on 12/21/2010

Even the Easter Bunny?

[birdlady5]

07:19 PM on 12/21/2010

Crazy republicans at it again!

[Redwood Eagle]

06:13 PM on 12/21/2010

Let Texas secede. And good riddance.

[Envguy]

07:24 PM on 12/21/2010

And the country would lose:
Jobs
•Texas’ November 2010 unemployment rate was 8.2 percent, up from 8.1 percent in October.
•Texas total nonfarm employment increased by 19,100 jobs from October to November. Between November 2009 and November 2010, Texas gained 192,100
•The U.S. gained 39,000 total nonfarm jobs in November 2010.
•The U.S. unemployment rate was 9.8 percent in November 2010, a 0.2 percent increase from October.
•The Texas unemployment rate has been at or below the national rate for 46 consecutive months.
Housing
•Thus far, Texas has weathered the national real estate crunch without significant damage to property values. Sales and construction activity dropped to pre-2007 levels but have begun to shows signs of recovery in 2010.
•A total of 3,766 building permits for single-family homes were issued in October 2010, 1,160 fewer than a year ago. In the 12 months ending in October 2010, 64,317 permits were issued, 6 percent more than one year ago.
•The number of multi-family building permits issued rose from 200 in October 2009 to 1,060 in October 2010. During the 12 months ending in October 2010, 17,282 permits were issued, 7 percent less than one year ago.
•In Texas, the median price for existing single-family homes increased by 2.0 percent from October 2009 to October 2010.
•In November 2010, the Texas foreclosure rate was one in every 717 mortgages. substantially better than Nevada’s one in 99, California’s one in 233, Arizona’s one in 262, and Florida’s one in 267.

[Redwood Eagle]

01:41 AM on 12/22/2010

Good for them. But this doesn't affect the rest of the US at all. The US would lose jobs? Not at all, as our overall unemployment rate would be adjusted for the loss. Housing doesn't matter at all, since houses can't be moved elsewhere. The US would lose some federal tax dollars, but all federal monies going into Texas would cease. Also, there would be a mass exodus out of Texas of non-Christians, gays and other minorities, since the tea-bag republic would become a facist 3rd world country so fast your head would spin. Maybe Mexico would take them on.....

[dragonmaster]

03:56 PM on 12/23/2010

Nothing lasts forever- as I recall in the 1980s Texas' economy was in a depression- peak oil is near- what happens then?

No regions robust economy lasts forever. And with future climate change Texas -will in large part become extremely hot and dry- making habitation difficult and agricultural all but impossible.

[Paul Shene III]

12:39 AM on 01/18/2011

I could say the same about California.

[Minolta321]

04:32 PM on 12/21/2010

So in the name of freedom progressives grab control of the internet in order to stifle any speech except socialist propaganda.

That's a lot Obama.

[drazowsky]

06:52 PM on 12/21/2010

Whuh?

[dragonmaster]

03:57 PM on 12/23/2010

Socialism is far preferable to Fascism.

[Wizer]

04:17 PM on 12/21/2010

When's the rapture? I can't wait until jesus comes sliding down out of the clouds and gathers his believers up and scoops them back up through the clouds.

You know, when you stop and think about what it is they believe, it sounds like they're waiting on a UFO to come back and get them.

[JeanRR]

02:46 PM on 12/24/2010

LOL

[PatchyFog]

04:17 PM on 12/21/2010

Clearly, "bunny trails" is code for hersuite Hispanic immigrants.

[JeanRR]

02:46 PM on 12/24/2010

With large ears?

[RedRat]

04:09 PM on 12/21/2010

OK, read the article but still do not really know what he means by "bunny trails". The gist I get is that he is basically anti-EPA and pollution control. Is this what we are going to get from these newly elected GOP guys, talking in some kind of code? Why doesn't he just come out and say what he means. Apparently he is against environmental controls on polluters, I think but am not sure. Perhaps who wrote this article could re-write the darn thing and make it clear.