Donald Trump's vow to undo the Obama administration's climate-change agenda might run into opposition among environmentalists, Democratic lawmakers and perhaps even Republican ones, but the president-elect does have some ways to put a crimp into the past president's agenda, the New York Times reports.
First, Trump can filibuster the regulations. The little-known Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs of the executive branch can hold up actions for months or years amid a meticulous review process, according to the paper.
"It has been a brake on agency regulation throughout its lifetime," Harvard Law professor Jody Freeman, an environmental regulation expert, told The Times. "Some presidents have used it as more of a brake than others."
Next, Trump can block funds to the Environmental Protection Agency or other environmental initiatives.
"You don't have to repeal these statutes," Freeman said. "You just have to make it impossible to implement them."
Some of Obama's agenda is still "in motion" and environmental groups can be expected to fight any Trump attempts to block them.
"Donald Trump can't just snap his fingers and change climate policy," director of government affairs at the Natural Resources Defense Council David Goldston told The Times. "We have ways to thwart him in Congress and the courts that we could employ."
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