Washington will join California, Oregon and other states in a lawsuit that seeks to permit automobile emission restrictions that Gov. Chris Gregoire believes are central to efforts to reduce the state’s contribution to global warming. Saying she’s frustrated by the Bush administration’s intransigence in the face of climate change, Gregoire on Thursday denounced the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s refusal Wednesday to grant states the authority to force automakers to build cleaner cars starting with the 2009 model year. The governor called a news conference to announce she has asked Attorney General Rob McKenna to back California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s legal challenge to the EPA’s ‘very unfortunate’ decision, which she also described as obstructionist and a violation of states’ rights. ‘I don’t have much doubt in my mind the states are going to win,’ said Gregoire, who is also a former state attorney general. Her analysis was based on two recent rulings in California and Vermont in which federal judges rejected auto industry efforts to derail the tailpipe rules. The industry says California’s rules would be economically devastating. Besides Gregoire, governors and officials from seven other states also pledged Thursday to support California’s legal battle. ‘It […]