"More than 100 million Americans believe that Judgment Day is just around the corner. It's no wonder then that a relatively long-term problem like climate change isn't a priority in the public's mind."

Fox "news" figures like commentator Glenn Beck have led the charge against the environmental movement. "The circus Roger Ailes created at Fox News made his network $900 million last year. But it may have lost him something more important: the next election."

The oil industry's hold on Congress was illustrated by the Senate's rejection of a Democratic effort to repeal some taxpayer subsidies of the oil giants. A new chart makes clear the connection between oil-industry campaign donations and Senators' support of subsidies.

"Members of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission have trumped the agency chairman and forced the release of unredacted safety reports on the proposed nuclear waste repository in Yucca Mountain, Nev."

"The California Chamber of Commerce routinely denounces bills that protect workers, consumers and the environment as job killers. But when the bills become law, there's no economic catastrophe."

"Opponents of a pipeline that would nearly double U.S. imports of Canadian oil-sands crude sued the State Department today in a bid to force speedy disclosure of any contacts it made with a lobbyist for the pipeline's sponsor."

"The Senate on Wednesday rejected a Republican bid to accelerate offshore drilling by requiring regulators to speed up decisions on permits and forcing the government to reschedule canceled lease sales in the Gulf of Mexico."

"The Senate on Tuesday blocked a Democratic proposal to strip the five leading oil companies of tax breaks that backers of the measure said were unfairly padding industry profits while consumers were struggling with high gas prices."

"The Obama administration is pushing back against plans by its oil spill commission co-chairman to spread his message about offshore drilling reforms to Cuba, the panel leader said today."

"Justice has eluded Ronnell Doughty, perhaps even failed him. Hospitalized as a toddler with serious lead poisoning, he's never learned to read well, dropped out of school and has a hard time controlling his temper — tragic but all-too-common outcomes of this urban health scourge. But Doughty, now 21, has been repeatedly denied a shot at compensation for the lasting injury done him two decades ago."