So the Bush administration has just listed the polar bear as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. They apparently had no intention of listing the bear (and have listed fewer species than any presidential administration ever) and were taken to court a few years ago by environmental groups. Enviros won the case, but, again, Bush had no intention of putting the polar bear on any list.

Finally, the green groups went back to court and the judge gave Bush till last week to do the listing. So at the 11th hour, the polar bear was listed--sort of. Apparently, Bush (as usual) thinks he can rewrite any law he doesn't like. In this case, he and his henchman, Dirk Kempthorn, say that the ESA protection doesn't include any protection that might reduce global warming or stop oil drilling, whether that helps the polar bear to survive or not.

Time for a new president.