This week’s must listen: our beloved Bob Inglis talks to Lee Rayburn in this radio interview.
This week’s must watch: a clip of Florida Rep. Carlos Curbelo on the National Geographic Channel ‘s Years of Living Dangerously, a documentary series on climate change.
This week in climate change news, President-elect Donald Trump tapped Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt to take the helm of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Pruitt is part of a coalition of state attorneys general suing the agency over the Clean Power Plan, and he has also sued over EPA’s recently announced regulations seeking to reduce methane emissions. Pruitt wrote in an op-ed in May that the climate debate is “far from settled” and that “scientists continue to disagree about the degree and extent of global warming and its connection to the actions of mankind.” Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-OK), who called himself a friend of Pruitt’s, said they feel similarly about climate change. “The world isn’t coming to an end tomorrow because of man-made gases,” Inhofe said, while calling Trump’s meeting yesterday with former Vice President Al Gore “more of a courtesy than a pivotal meeting.”
The Weather Channel slammed Breitbart News Network for misusing their video in a story alleging global temperatures are cooling. Breitbart, which has a history of questioning and even mocking the validity of climate science, ran a story titled “Global Temperatures Plunge. Icy Silence from Climate Alarmists” and used a Weather Channel video explaining the wintry conditions typically caused by La Nina.
“Note to @BreitbartNews: Earth is not Cooling, Climate Change is Real and Stop Using Our Video to Mislead Americans,” The Weather Channel tweeted. They also elaborated in a statement why the Breitbart story was flawed. The House Science Committee, chaired by Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX-21), retweeted the Breitbart story. Smith has taken heat recently for his climate denial and was not endorsed in the most recent election by the conservative San Antonio Express-News for his “bullying on the issue of climate change.”
As seen above, Rep. Curbelo, our most active “red star” ecoright climate news generator, is featured prominently in the most recent episode of YLD. In response to a comment about his courageous leadership on climate, Curbelo said “it’s kind of a shame that in today’s politics doing the right thing is considered courageous.”
“What conservatives need to do is come up with an agenda,” he continued. “Up to now, we have just forfeited on decision. That has to change.” The Florida Congressman, who represents a flood-prone area of the state, is widely expected to take the lead on an all-Republican climate change resolution commonly referred to as the Gibson Resolution after lead cosponsor, Rep. Chris Gibson (R-NY-19), who is retiring at the end of the year. Curbelo also co-founded the House Climate Solutions Caucus.
Have a great weekend, ClimateEyers.