Texas Gov. Rick Perry's decision to vie for the Republican presidential nomination gives the campaign two top candidates who are skeptical of the human impact on climate change and have called for rolling back environmental regulations and reining in what they view as an overzealous Environmental Protection Agency. Perry, who entered the race Aug. 13, and Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota have long viewed EPA rules as a barrier to a growing economy and job creation. Perry scored well in opinion polls even before he joined the campaign, and Bachmann's victory in the Iowa straw poll helped establish her in the top tier of candidates in a crowded field. Both still face a formidable opponent in former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, who is widely viewed as the frontrunner and a moderate more often focused on how federal regulations in general are an obstacle to a growing economy, rather than a specific critic of EPA rules.
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