Connaughton's New Job: Greenwashing Constellation

James L. Connaughton, who chaired the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) under George W. Bush, is Constellation Energy's new "executive vice president" of "corporate affairs, public and environmental policy." The company says Connaughton will lead its "comprehensive public and environmental agenda ... leverag[ing] the strength of its low-emitting merchant fleet, expanding renewable portfolio and energy efficiency services," and helping to advance "the critical renaissance of emission-free nuclear energy." Connaughton -- who was an industry lobbyist prior to joining the White House -- helped the Bush administration block international action on climate change (while, at times, pretending to be a global leader). An Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) report on misleading statements about New York air quality post-9/11 blamed Connaughton and his CEQ for "convinc[ing] EPA to add reassuring statements and delete cautionary ones" from public press releases.