From the Center for American Progress Action Fund's Progress Report:


GLOBAL WARMING
A Hero And A Target

House and Senate committee hearings on global warming today expect "huge 
turnouts," as they play host to the testimony of Vice President Al Gore, who 
will be sending Congress a message "demanding immediate action to solve the 
climate crisis." Carrying with him as many as 500,000 postcards from 
individuals seeking "real action on global warming," Gore returns to Capitol 
Hill "as a celebrated Academy Award winner, a Nobel Peace Prize nominee, and 
a man on a mission to save the planet." Gore's efforts to raise the public 
consciousness of looming environmental and economic disasters have made him 
the subject of right-wing attacks. Long-time critics of global warming 
science have refocused their criticisms of late on the leading spokesman of 
the climate crisis awakening. Conservatives have hurled personal attacks on 
Gore, calling him an "alarmist," an "extremist," and a "high-profile 
hypocrite." The intensity of the right-wing rage is a reflection of Gore's 
incredible success in winning over public attention and goodwill for his 
work on the environment. Two years ago, global warming was still considered 
a fringe issue to many. Today, the debate is over -- Americans 
overwhelmingly agree that the climate crisis exists and that we must act now 
to reverse it. Gore's documentary (and companion book) An Inconvenient Truth 
had a profound impact on how Americans view the issue of global warming, and 
the public stage that Gore now commands is a deserved recognition of his 
work.

PATHETIC ATTEMPTS TO STUMP GORE: Earlier this week, the Drudge Report -- a 
leading global warming denier -- posted questions that were “circulating 
behind-the-scenes” and would supposedly leave “Gore scrambling for answers.” 
The list recycled long-running efforts by conservatives to play down the 
extent of human contribution to global warming. One question said: "Wouldn't 
it make more sense that the sun is responsible for warming since it is the 
common denominator?" Media Matters reports that theory has been debunked by 
the scientific community, noting that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate 
Change (IPCC) -- in a report it released in February -- "concluded that both 
greenhouse gases and solar radiation are contributing to global warming." 
Moreover, "solar activity has not increased since the 1950s" and is 
therefore unlikely to be able to singularly explain the recent warming. 
Another question for Gore read: "Joseph Romm, the executive director for the 
Center for Energy and Climate Solutions, has said we must build 700 large 
nuclear plants to stave off climate change. Where do you stand on the need 
for nuclear energy?" Romm, a former assistant energy secretary in the 
Clinton administration, noted that he sides with Gore and is in favor of 
"mandatory carbon dioxide controls" before making calculated and safe 
investments into nuclear power.

SMEARS AND LIES: There is no meaningful debate within the scientific 
community about the human contribution to global warming, so the right wing 
has instead busied itself with propagating information to smear the leading 
spokesman of the climate crisis awakening movement. Recently, Fox News's 
Sean Hannity lashed out at Gore for supposedly flying on private jets, 
despite having no evidence Gore had done so since Jan. 2000. Gore's office 
told The Progress Report that the Vice President reduces his emissions as 
much as he can, drives a hybrid, flies commercially whenever possible, and 
purchases green power. Fox News's Brit Hume chose to smear Gore by claiming 
he was a hypocrite for accepting royalties from a zinc mine located on his 
Tennessee property. But as the Tennessean reported, "[T]here is no evidence 
the mine has caused serious damage to the environment in the area or 
threatened the health of his neighbors." Conservatives were also overjoyed 
to highlight a recent New York Times article claiming that scientists have 
disputed Gore's environmental work. At least four of the sources cited in 
the story have records of misinformation on the issue. Also, Media Matters 
notes the Times last year printed a story explaining that scientists "tended 
to agree" with Gore's main points.

MORE WORK TO DO: While the scientific consensus is in (global warming is 
"unequivocal" and human activity is its main driver), a well-heeled and 
carefully-orchestrated movement on the right is trying to doctor it. Funded 
with money from oil and gas firms, conservative think tanks continue to pour 
money into efforts to push back on the science. The American Enterprise 
Institute offered $10,000 only to scientists whose views were critical of 
the scientific consensus. The Competitive Enterprise Institute, which is 
funded with donations from Exxon Mobil, ran television ads downplaying the 
impact of increasing levels of carbon dioxide, stating "they call it 
pollution; we call it life." A hearing of the House Oversight and Government 
Reform Committee demonstrated the pervasive influence this ideology has had 
inside the White House. Philip Cooney, a former environmental adviser to 
President Bush, acknowledged changing scientific statements to "align" them 
with "the administration's stated policy" that there is no consensus that 
global warming is caused by man. Gore's mission to increase awareness is 
thus challenged by those wanting to bury their heads in the sands. 
Exemplifying this mentality, Sen. Trent Lott (R-MS) said of Gore's testimony 
today, "Those who believe all his garbage are going to be excited to death 
and the rest of us are going to ignore it."



Neila Seaman, MPA
Director
Sierra Club, Iowa Chapter
3839 Merle Hay Road, Suite 280
Des Moines, IA  50310
[log in to unmask]
515-277-8868

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