Climate Politics

Neil deGrasse Tyson blasts Congress for not supporting science

Hayden Planetarium director and former slice of astrophysicist beefcake Neil deGrasse Tyson has some choice words for Congress about its priorities. He's talking about space exploration, which is his particular deal, but the same arguments apply to cleantech and renewable energy innovation.

Congress doesn't believe global warming is a security threat

Climate change will shift the equation of global power and craziness, and the intelligence community is trying to place for those situations. But Congress isn't interested in that. Mother Jones' Kate Sheppard gives this example:

In 2008, [Thomas] Fingar, [former chairman of the National Intelligence Council] now a fellow at Stanford University, took the lead in drafting the first national intelligence assessment on the security challenges presented by climate change. It found that global warming will further destabilize already-volatile parts of the world and should be considered in national security planning. But congressional Republicans dismissed the report as "a waste of resources."

Bachmann asked the 'job-killing' EPA for money to stimulate local economy

Despite recent threats to shut down the EPA, Michele Bachmann has solicited its economic benefits for her home state numerous times in the past.

Rick Perry prays for an end to drought and EPA regulations

The rain prayers haven't worked yet -- maybe the Texas governor's prayers against the EPA won't, either.

Bachmann pledges to have the EPA's 'doors locked and lights turned off'

If Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann can't abolish the EPA like she promised, she may just try to lock employees out of the building

Roseanne’s running for president — where does she stand on climate change?

Roseanne Barr told Jay Leno that she's planning to run for president (and also prime minister of Israel). She'll be representing her own "Green Tea Party" in the 2012 elections. So how green is this tea party?

Beyond budget cuts: top five policy priorities for clean energy

Even with cuts looming, there are feasible policy steps we could take toward clean energy.

Debt and (carbon) taxes: Obama's last chance for climate redemption

Just into Obama's hypothetical second term, when the Bush tax cuts are poised to expire, could be the best time to enact a carbon tax.

Storm chaser: Sen. Durbin carries on lonely fight against climate change

While Obama lifts the "cloud of uncertainty" over the economy, Dick Durbin looks like one of the only lawmakers still worried about the real weather.

Why is the EPA still an economic scapegoat?

Every time the economy declines, the same anti-EPA rhetoric is trotted out. But a clean environment and a strong economy are not mutually exclusive. A cost-benefit analysis of regulation shows taxpayers coming out on top.