The Rise of the Religious Right in the Republican Party

     New York Times, Washington Briefing February 7, 2003

     SENATOR HIRES COAL LOBBYIST Senator James M. Inhofe, the Oklahoma Republican who is chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, has hired a mining lobbyist to oversee clean air legislation. The lobbyist, John Shanahan, is director of air quality issues at the National Mining Association. The president of the association, Jack Gerard, said he was pleased that a person who "intimately understands the industry" would be in a position "to educate the administration and Congress on the importance of coal in meeting our nation's future energy needs." Frank O'Donnell of the Clean Air Trust called the hiring "a sign that Inhofe's top priority is to protect the coal industry." Katharine Q. Seelye (NYT)