Friday afternoon can't come soon enough for EPA Administrator Stephen "Stonewall" Johnson, who has managed to find his way into just about every news cycle this week.

The good news (for Johnson) today is that the Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming postponed a vote on whether to hold him in contempt for failing to release agency documents regarding EPA and White House deliberations on regulating CO2 as a pollutant, as required by last year's Supreme Court ruling. The EPA now says it will work with the Bush administration to produce the documents.

The not-so-good-news for Johnson is that the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee narrowly approved a bill yesterday overturning EPA's decision from last December not to grant California a Clean Air Act waiver allowing the state to implement tougher emissions standards.

Committee chairman Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) said that because President Bush would almost certainly veto the bill, she is unlikely to push for full Senate vote anytime soon. But yesterday's 10-9 vote still represents a symbolic defeat for Johnson and the EPA, especially coming days after a House investigation revealed White House meddling in last year's decision, which went against the recommendation of EPA's own scientists.

All three remaining presidential candidates have said they support granting the waiver to California and the other 14 states who are trying to implement similar emissions standards. Hillary Clinton is a member of the EPW committee and voted by proxy in favor of yesterday's measure.