Not to worry . . . it’s just an “haboob.”

Posted on | August 26, 2025 | 1 Comment

Mike Magee

We awakened this morning to learn that there is a new word we Americans must learn if we wish our children and grandchildren to breathe healthy air in their near future. It is haboob. According to the National Weather Service, haboob is “an intense, fast-moving wall of dust kicked up by thunderstorm winds.”

One hit Phoenix yesterday, accompanied by not only rain and lightening, but instant darkness “casting an apocalyptic pall over the region.” Official warnings to drivers screeched “pull aside stay alive.” Experts believe we’ll be seeing more of these as global warming continues to gain steam.

The American Lung Association, in their 2025 “State of the Air” report, pointed the dirty finger at Trump’s EPA performance. They say 46% of Americans (156 million) are currently living in “places that get failing grades for unhealthy levels of ozone or particle pollution. That’s 25 million more than last year.

Concerned Americans will soon be mispronouncing their new word “Ha Boob” to describe the smiling Trump official above. That’s U.S. EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin. On March 12, 2025, he proudly declared “Today is the greatest day of deregulation our nation has seen. We are driving a dagger straight into the heart of the climate change religion to drive down cost of living for American families, unleash American energy, bring auto jobs back to the U.S. and more.”

That’s a decidedly different tone than he struck during his confirmation hearing on January 16, 2025, when he said, “And I will say that we will never have done enough to ensure that our water and our air is clean, safe and healthy. Whatever we do every day to achieve this objective, we need to wake up the next day looking for ways to do more.”

Actions of course speak louder than words. So here are a few steps he’s especially proud of accomplishing in his first 6 months:

Reconsideration of regulations on power plants (Clean Power Plan 2.0)
Reconsideration of regulations throttling the oil and gas industry (OOOO b/c)
Reconsideration of Mercury and Air Toxics Standards that improperly targeted coal-fired power plants (MATS)
Reconsideration of mandatory Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program that imposed significant costs on the American energy supply (GHG Reporting Program)
Reconsideration of limitations, guidelines and standards (ELG) for the Steam Electric Power Generating Industry to ensure low-cost electricity while protecting water resources (Steam Electric ELG)
Reconsideration of wastewater regulations for oil and gas development to help unleash American energy (Oil and Gas ELG)
Reconsideration of Biden-Harris Administration Risk Management Program rule that made America’s oil and natural gas refineries and chemical facilities less safe (Risk Management Program Rule)

But at least his actions aren’t “woke” or slanted toward DEI according to the American Lung Association 2025 update:

“Although people of color make up 41.2% of the overall population of the U.S., they are 50.2% of the people living in a county with at least one failing (air quality) grade. Notably, Hispanic individuals are nearly three times as likely as white individuals to live in a community with three failing grades.”

So what does “Ha Boob” think of the haboob. No comment just yet. But the U.S. Small Business Administration says “Stay tuned.” On August 16, 2025, they encouraged concerned air-breathing citizens to tune in to upcoming public hearings on proposed changes in air regulations. These include: