Press Conference to Release New Report; PAYBACKS: How the Bush Admin. is Giving Away Our Environment to Corporate Contributors

9/24/2002

From: Brian Smith of Earthjustice, 510-550-6714

News Advisory:

WHAT: Tele-Press Conference to Release New Report; PAYBACKS: How the Bush Administration is Giving Away Our Environment to Corporate Contributors

WHO: -- Nick Nyhart, executive director, Public Campaign -- Buck Parker, executive director, Earthjustice -- Nancy Watzman, research and investigative projects director, Public Campaign -- Maria Weidner, policy analyst, Earthjustice's White House Watch

WHEN: Wednesday, Sept. 25 11 a.m. ET/8 a.m. PT

A full copy of the report will be available at: http://www.earthjustice.org and http://www.publicampaign.org

Journalists seeking advanced copies of the report and the phone in number for the teleconference, contact: Brian Smith, Earthjustice, 510-550-6714

Background:

In a new report entitled PAYBACKS: How the Bush Administration is Giving Away Our Environment to Corporate Contributors non-profit, public interest organizations Earthjustice and Public Campaign have documented -- for the first time -- the strong correlation between the financial investments of polluting and resource extractive industries in the Bush-Cheney/GOP campaign coffers and widespread rollbacks of the nation's environmental and public health laws.

Major corporations that pollute the environment are now reaping the benefits of having invested in an administration committed to eliminating important environmental and public health safeguards. This report provides a compelling example of how the public's interest in protecting public health and the environment has been trumped by well-heeled corporate interests that made over $44 million in political contributions. The report also shows the need for clean money in campaign financing to end this 'pay-to-play' brand of policy making.