Federal Judge, Martin Feldman granted an injunction in favor of oil industry service operators against Obama's 6 month moratorium on deep water off shore oil drilling.
The drilling ban came as a result of an earlier Interior Department report in which the department's head, Ken Salazar, had unilaterally inserted language calling for a blanket deep water drilling moratorium. A recommendation which he said had been peer reviewed by seven National Academy of Engineering experts.
The problem, the experts weren't aware of Salazar's selective editing. What they had concluded was the opposite of what Salazar misleadingly wrote - a blanket moratorium would only serve to punish the innocent through unnecessary economic hardship.
So did Salazar lie? If so, why isn't the Justice Department prosecuting him?
Judge Feldman saw through Salazar's political manipulation, indicating that the agency hadn't provided any evidence that greater injury would occur if others were still permitted to operate and overturned the ban on June 22nd.
A dissatisfied Interior Secretary Ken Salazar in turn announced the continuance of the moratorium in direct defiance of the court's order. Salazar said in a statement Tuesday the Administration would shortly issue a new moratorium with changes. He also told a Congressional hearing that even so "the (original) moratorium stays in place.".
In the mean time, the Justice Department says, despite Secretary Salazar's statements, the government will comply with the judge's order blocking the moratorium.
Really, how will they do that since at the same time Attorney General, Eric Holder has asked the judge to "stay" his order while the Justice Department appeals his decision.
In the race for slimiest, Obama Administration officials are still far, far ahead of spilt oil.
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