LITCHFIELD, N.H. (Reuters) - Democrat John Kerry rejected suggestions his presidential bid was in disarray on Wednesday as he touted his environmental credentials during a stop in New Hampshire, site of the first state primary next year.
Joined by New Hampshire environmental activists, Kerry accused President Bush of letting corporations try to rewrite America's Clean Water Act to increase the amount of pollution in rivers, lakes and streams.
The Republican National Committee rejected his accusations and said the Bush administration was pursuing "common sense" environmental policies.
Kerry said if elected, he would push for a new environmental enforcement agency -- a bipartisan commission to be created by Congress -- to make sure polluters are prosecuted regardless of their political connections.
"The symbol of (my strong record) is my willingness to fight against those interests: Big Coal, Big Oil, Big Electric, big corporate lobbyists who try again and again to gut these laws and do away with the enforcement mechanisms and the regulations," he said.
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