"An overwhelming voice from the states"

The Sacramento Bee reports this morning that states are rallying to California's side as it challenges the EPA's egregious waiver denial:

From Oregon to Maine, a multistate groundswell emerged on Thursday behind California's struggle to enforce its greenhouse gas emissions law.

One day after the Bush administration blocked the law, governors and other officials from at least eight states pledged to help California as it prepares to sue the administration.

"We're going to be out there on California's side," Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski said in an interview. "The only way we're going to get the national administration to move on this is to keep up the pressure."

Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire said the support of multiple governors, plus members of Congress, could create political pressure on the Bush administration to reconsider. "It's an overwhelming voice from the states," she said.

Meanwhile the San Francisco Chronicle has a follow-up story to Juliet Eilperin's big scoop in the Washington Post that the waiver was denied over the unanimous opinion of the agency's legal and technical staff.  When asked about the power point slide, prepared by EPA's legal staff, saying, "EPA likely to lose suit," EPA spokeswoman said the dog ate her homework that agency officials can't find the document.