House Science Committee's Breitbart tweet sets off alarm bells for liberals
The tweet highlighted government opposition to climate efforts and raised concerns about the rise of the聽the conservative, white nationalist 'alt-right' movement.
The tweet highlighted government opposition to climate efforts and raised concerns about the rise of the聽the conservative, white nationalist 'alt-right' movement.
A US House Science Committee tweet聽promoting a climate-change denying article聽has raised questions about the future of climate science under the next administration.
On Thursday, the House of Representatives Committee on Science, Space and Technology shared an article from so-called alt-right news and opinion site Breitbart News. According to the article, climate change is driven entirely by weather events like El Ni帽o and La Ni帽a. Reports of extreme temperatures, the author concluded, were simply 鈥減ropaganda.鈥�
The future of climate science and the role of the conservative, white nationalist "alt-right" movement in the incoming administration have both been concerns for liberals, in particular, since Donald Trump was elected as the next president in November. Unsurprisingly, then, a tweet bringing the two issues together generated criticism from a range of quarters.
Scientists pushed back against the idea of a 鈥渃limate hiatus,鈥� while one member of the House Science Committee, Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson (D) of Texas, tweeted, 鈥淔alse news & false facts put us all in danger鈥︹��
The House Science Committee oversees NASA, the Department of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, among others. It largely determines what research is funded, and so has tremendous influence over environmental policy. For those concerned about climate change, the fact that the committee shared a story denying human impacts on the climate is therefore problematic.
Last week, policy advisors to President-elect Trump announced that the incoming administration would curb NASA鈥檚 role in climate research. Mr. Trump, who described climate change as a 鈥渉oax鈥� while on the campaign trail, hopes to reorient the agency toward space.
Scientists have expressed concern that his attitude could spell bad news for climate research as a whole, as 海角大神鈥檚 Joseph Dussault wrote on Tuesday. NASA's climate research would聽likely be redistributed to agencies such as NOAA, which have limited budgets. What's more, many research activities rely on NASA satellite data, which may no longer be available.
Sharing the Breitbart story, in particular, has reinforced liberals鈥� concerns about the role of the alt-right in the next administration. Steve Bannon, who was recently appointed chief strategist and senior counselor to the president-elect, formerly served as the executive chairman of Breitbart. And members of the alt-right see him as someone who will help the Trump campaign keep its promises, including such divisive commitments as building a wall on the US-Mexico border.
Of course, the rise of Donald Trump is not the only force behind the House Science Committee鈥檚 apparent opposition to climate efforts.
Rep. Lamar Smith (R) of Texas, who chairs the committee, has criticized the Paris climate agreement, which aims to curb global temperature rise.
鈥淭he United States鈥� contribution to the Paris climate agreement, which includes the Clean Power Plan, could cost up to $176 billion annually, and would have no significant impacts on climate change,鈥� he said in a statement posted on the Committee鈥檚 website.