After months of wrangling over the budget, President Obama and congressional leaders on both sides of the aisle finally hammered out a compromise agreement tonight that would increase U.S. borrowing power by raising the debt ceiling while cutting at least $2.4 trillion in federal spending over the next 10 years.

Now they just have to sell it to the rest of Congress--both Republicans and Democrats--and convince the American people that it serves their long-term interests.

Among the things that could make that a hard sell, along with Medicare and defense cuts, are the ways the proposed agreement would undermine environmental protections and increase public health risks.

The proposal includes dozens of provisions that reduce or eliminate funding needed to regulate polluters, manage public lands effectively, protect endangered species and habitats, and oversee or restrict mining operations--from mountaintop removal mining in Appalachia to uranium mining at the Grand Canyon.


