Last night the President nominated Susan Dudley to replace John Graham as head of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) in the Office of Management and Budget. Dudley is a superb choice. She currently directs the regulatory studies program at the Mercatus Center, and has substantial experience with the regulatory process, including in OIRA and the Environmental Protection Agency. She’s quite thoughtful as a committed conservationist who does not see regulation as the solution to every problem. Thus it should be no surprise that when she was first rumored for the post environmental activists began a quiet smear campaign against her. Now that the nomination is official, expect them to ratchet up the volume and shrillness of their attacks. It’s a shame, because Dudley is the sort of nominee who should be easily confirmed.