In a letter to the Wall Street Journal , a constellation of leading utility CEOs write, “ Contrary to the claims that the EPA’s agenda will have negative economic consequences, our companies’ experience complying with air quality regulations demonstrates that regulations can yield important economic benefits , including job creation, while maintaining reliability .” House Republicans on the Energy and Commerce Committee held a hearing yesterday on a bill to strip the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of its power to regulate greenhouse gas emissions. Republicans nearly unanimously oppose letting the EPA address the threat of global warming, even though the Supreme Court ordered the EPA to regulate carbon pollution, but some conservatives want to go even further.  Think Progress has the story of one unlikely EPA supporter in this cross-post . Despite the EPA’s widespread popularity , a number of conservative leaders and Republicans in Congress, led by GOP presidential candidate Newt Gingrich, are pushing to dismantle the entire agency. Rep. Joe Walsh (R-IL) told ThinkProgress the EPA “ought to be scrapped.” Rep. Pete Olson (R-TX) agreed, vowing the “we’re going to fight like heck” to get rid of the EPA

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EPA finds an unlikely defender: Rep. Joe Barton