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Vulnerability: Science
When we compiled our vast catalog of the Bush Administration's war on information, we had to devote a whole section on global warming, so unrelenting was the administration's effort to stifle dissent.
Well, today House oversight committee Chair Henry Waxman (D-CA) has released the results of the panel's 16-month investigation into political interference in government climate change science. You can see the 37-page report here. It details how the administration censored climate scientists, edited climate change reports, and involved itself in the Environment Protection Agency’s legal opinions.
The takeaway? "The evidence before the Committee leads to one inescapable conclusion: the Bush Administration has engaged in a systematic effort to manipulate climate change science and mislead policymakers and the public about the dangers of global warming."
My favorite part, from the committee's summary of its report:
The White House played a major role in crafting the August 2003 EPA legal opinion disavowing authority to regulate greenhouse gases. [Chairman of the White House Council on Environmental Quality] James Connaughton personally edited the draft legal opinion. When an EPA draft quoted the National Academy of Science conclusion that “the changes observed over the last several decades are likely mostly due to human activities,” CEQ objected because “the above quotes are unnecessary and extremely harmful to the legal case being made.” The first line of another internal CEQ document transmitting comments on the draft EPA legal opinion reads: “Vulnerability: science.” The final opinion incorporating the White House edits was rejected by the Supreme Court in April 2007 in Massachusetts v. EPA.
Comments (20)
Crust wrote on December 10, 2007 3:54 PM:Nicely timed as Gore and the IPCC receive the Nobel prize:
http://thinkprogress.org/gore-nobel-speech
moondancer wrote on December 10, 2007 4:05 PM:Wait until they release the bush "flat earth" doctrine. That and the Fred Flinstone initiative sum up the Big Oils' directive to the chimpanzee in chief.
Margaret wrote on December 10, 2007 4:21 PM:We as the american electorate voted for president Bush. He knows what is best.
Don wrote on December 10, 2007 4:30 PM:I wish all the people in this country would realize we are a christain nation
and just like before we need a christain to keep us safe. God walks side by side with americans and we elected this good christain man so get use to it and stop whining
I pretty much agree.
2nyce wrote on December 10, 2007 4:52 PM:We chose Bush weather we like it or not.
He is a man of god.
God is science.
Therefore we must trust the scientific decisions Bush makes.
Anyone who thinks otherwise is not able to think logically.
looks like some people have been watching CBS... continental brainwashing service
Christ. wrote on December 10, 2007 5:06 PM:Christ Almighty, where do all these bots come from.
Why is it I feel "faith-based" trolls are only here to disrupt genuine commenting, since they obviously can't read worth sh*t.
Cheryl wrote on December 10, 2007 5:07 PM:What is a 'christain'? Is that pronounced
Christ. wrote on December 10, 2007 5:11 PM:cry-stain?
"Cry-stain" sounds about right.
PJ White wrote on December 10, 2007 5:16 PM:Christ Almighty.
Am I correct in assuming that impeachment is still off the table? Now what else can we expect from the spineless Dems in Congress, abetted by the traitorous Repugnicans? Will anyone take my bet that when the Repugs are permanently voted out of office in 2008 (unless they engineer another way to steal the election, which is NOT off the table), the Democans will just say, "Oh, let's let bygones be bygones," and let these thieves and liars and traitors walk away? Questions, lots of questions.
Namekarb wrote on December 10, 2007 5:39 PM:PJ:
You overlook the obvious. There is only one party, "The Ruling Party." It has two subcategories called the Democratic and Republican parties.
The Ruling Party will always protect the interests of the rulers. It is a sign of the times. We have two mega-banks, two mega-pharmaceuticals, two mega-oil companies, etc, etc and all in the name of Capitalism's holy grail, "competition."
Is the picture any clearer now?
Christ. wrote on December 10, 2007 6:26 PM:>Questions, lots of
>PJ, you completely forget: this is now a unitarian executive, what the pres sez goes.
I'm sure it's covered by executive fiat, under a secret order.
And if it hasn't been, it now is. Get used to it.
Congress signed-off, the heavyset female vocalist has vocalized.
Ferruge wrote on December 10, 2007 7:44 PM:OK, so the Bush administration has once again been found to behave badly. So the hell what? It's not like this Congress has the BALLZ to do anything about it.
Oh wait, I forgot. Maybe someone on a committee will write a Sternly Worded Letter!
Northlite wrote on December 10, 2007 8:52 PM:The Bush Co. and more pervasive state and local efforts to undermine science, primarily the attack on the theory and science of evolution, global warming, and stem cell research are just not in our best long-term interests. The President does an especially good job of treating science as an elitest joke. Does he think that his slighting of this formerly "neutral" enterprise will encourage our best and brightest to discover the new technologies that will surely drive our future economies, not to mention solving a myriad of health, transportation, energy, etc. problems and at least theoretically making our lives better.(I love my ipod!) It is clear that to compete in the global economy we need intelligence and creativity. Its clear that jobs will go to those with knowledge But to him it seems just a joke, and so to is it perceived as a joke or something worse by "people of faith" and other right wingers. The President and the right-wing are forcing us to keep one of our best weapons tied behind our backs. Its really sad and its really disgusting what they have done to "science."
Uncle_Meat wrote on December 10, 2007 8:52 PM:Sent this out to the buddies not too long ago, before the "Global Warming" rhetoric had reached such idiocy. (Maybe it always was, and I just never noticed)
Just another scam..
JimBob wrote on December 10, 2007 9:53 PM:What IS it with wingnuts and spelling??
True beleever. wrote on December 10, 2007 10:27 PM:Wingnuts?!? Well there were nuts in the gardyn of edyn and god's host of holey angles have wings. stix and stones make break my bonz buT cryticizing my spelling will not swey me from my writeous wingnut path as I follow are feerless leader into the valley of the shadoes of deth. You libarel eleetist snobs make me want to pyook.
Jambo wrote on December 10, 2007 11:05 PM:Wingnut bad spelling is not entirely due to their native stupidity and dullness but more to poor education, a steady diet of Twinkies and a brain frozen into primitive beliefs about the nature of reality, primarily the all too common "God 'n Jesus" fantasies.
fuzz wrote on December 10, 2007 11:29 PM:You know what would work well with "God 'n Jesus" fantasies? Joe Pesci.
"God 'n Jesus 'n Joe Pesci"
Jason Usborne wrote on December 11, 2007 11:39 AM:If there is a God, I am sure It doesn't appreciate the sycophants who think they have a soul and have acquired some fiction real estate in the world beyond. If there is a Creator, I am sure that It wants intelligent helpers to expand and maintain a foundation capable of supporting intelligent life. If there is a God, It wants spiritual fruits which may be developed under the guidance of an expert (and they still exist), not religious nuts who are out of touch with true reality and probably do not have a soul anyway. BTW, I use the pronoun It because if there is a god, It is by definition, beyond our comprehension.
"The Tao that can be named is not the True Tao."
--Lao Tzu, Tao Te Ching
Jane wrote on December 11, 2007 12:00 PM:These nuts are subject to the famed CDS -- Clinton Derangement Syndrome. If Bill tells the truth they can't believe it. Bill attacks Osama -- this shows that Osama is not a threat and Bushie can take his time making a plan.
Gore believes in global warming this must be a liberal plot to scare us all. Bushie: I'm gong to wait for the science to come in. You mean the science came in and Gore was right?
Guess what I'm going to bury the science!
Great job, Bushies!