Restitutor Orbis

A full week of Obama's presidency has gone by, and it's been the most enjoyable week of the past eight years. In fact, I don't think I've been this happy since Clinton was president. If Bush hadn't done all in his power to bring America to her knees, I'd be even happier. But as I've been saying, at least we have hope now.

Speaking of Bush, Obama is now facing some hard work fixing the breakdown of environmental protections weakened and, in places, outright destroyed by Bush's maliciousness.

Time Magazine reports

when it comes to environmental regulations, he's still in the grip of yesterday. In his last few months in office, former President George W. Bush's Administration pushed through over 150 "midnight regulations," many of them weakening existing environmental protections. Although Obama is now in charge, most of Bush's new rules are on the books, and changing them will take time and effort from an already burdened White House. "The Obama Administration will be saddled with reversing harmful Bush rules at the same time that Obama wants to enact his own agenda," says John Walke, a senior attorney for the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC).

Time observers that "The Obama Administration isn't completely helpless. As the President, Obama of course can push through regulations of his own, but that can take months."

That said, Obama has already made at least one important move: MSNBC reports that

President Barack Obama is poised to let California and other states set their own more stringent auto emission standards in their drive to slash greenhouse gases, an official familiar with the decision said Sunday.

. This is great news. I well remember how angry I was when Bush denied California's request for a waiver. It seemed small minded and mean spirited. Obama, however, is made of better stuff. As MSNBC notes, "he move is significant on two fronts: It could empower states to set tougher standards in targeting emissions, which are blamed for contributing to global climate change."

Obama is also expected to direct the Transportation Department to get moving on rules for automakers to improve fuel economy. A 2007 law requires that by 2020 new cars and trucks meet 35 miles per gallon, a 40 percent increase over current standards. The Bush administration ended its tenure before putting the new fuel-economy rules in place.

I would love to see Bush prosecuted for all his crimes against America and against the American people. The world, I think, should have to get in line and have whatever is left of him when we're through. I don't know if that will happen, but it needs to be done. We can't let a president do the things Bush has done ever again.

Finally, MSNBC reports that "The president on Monday is also expected to tout proposals that he says would boost clean energy supplies while also producing badly needed jobs in so-called "green" industries."

Hopefully, this will not include "clean coal" which is a canard if there ever was one. There is no such thing as recent troubles in Tennessee.

A final bit of news today: The Senate voted today to confirm Tim Geithner as the next treasury secretary. He was sworn in by Joe Biden. He appears to be the best man for the job, and he promises far better oversight on the stimulus money than previously displayed by Bush's people.