Ever since he waddled into office three years ago, President Trump has been waging war against the environment, and the union of federal employees who are trying to protect it.
He has, among other things, opened up federal land to oil and gas drilling, lifted limits on coal mining leases, redefined what water bodies are in order to make it easier for companies to pollute them, and attempted to prevent states like California from setting their own limits on auto emissions.
Trump’s pollsters had to break the bad news that if he didn’t do something—anything—he could lose Florida, a key swing state, in the 2020 election.
Trump says the EPA union—represented by the American Federation of Government Employees—has been recalcitrant in negotiations. The union says it’s the other way around, that Trump’s the recalcitrant one.
In the case of the EPA, Trump has taken away employees’ rights to file a grievance regarding a punishment, and he’s forced presidents of local unions to return to their regular federal jobs.
But those appeals may take weeks to adjudicate. “Trump doesn’t care if imposing a contract is illegal,” says Cantello. “He says, ‘I’m doing it—stop me!’”
