Global warming has always been a hot topic (no pun intended) amongst differing political affiliations. Some believe it is a fact, while others consider it a form of propaganda. The topic of climate change has recently become even more divisive, as recent documents have caused some to question its validity. Furthering the debate is the Obama administration's response to this information, which has quickly developed into a partisan argument, with many criticizing the president's political motives.
The Obama administration has continued to push aggressive energy legislation despite recent evidence indicating the global warming argument may be based on faulty science. The president hedged his bet Monday in case the American Clean Energy and Security Act, which passed the House but is currently stalled in the Senate, doesn’t make it onto his desk. Among other regulations, the bill requires electric utilities to meet 20 percent of their electricity demand through renewable energy sources and energy efficiency by 2020.
Ignoring the discovery of a large amount of information, which, if true, proves that prominent climate change scientists manipulated data and averted proper peer reviews of their findings, the Environmental Protection Agency on Monday issued a final ruling that greenhouse gases endanger human health. This ruling allows the government agency to put limits on emissions even if Congress fails to pass a law to achieve the same objective.
More than 1000 emails and 72 documents were hacked from a server at the University of East Anglia's Climate Research Unit and published on the Internet. Officials at the university confirmed that information was taken without permission from one of their servers and they have opened an investigation. In the wake of “climategate”, Phil Jones stepped down from his post as Unit Director while the investigation is conducted.
Some emails Jones allegedly wrote to colleagues ignited controversy. One email suggests that he and others boycott an academic journal because it planned to publish a paper they didn’t agree with. Another said Jones had hidden a decline in global temperatures by employing a “trick” on a chart he made. In other exchanges, Jones requested emails between himself and others on a specific topic be deleted.
President Obama's actions seem to depict that he has chosen to overlook any evidence that is contrary to his opinion and instead plow forth with his own agenda. His stop at the Copenhagen Climate Conference this week is designed to show the world he will not be moved in his commitment to curb emissions.
No one will deny that keeping the earth clean is a worthy goal, as are recycling and reducing water and energy consumption. What is not good is the effect “green” regulations will have on business and the struggling economy. Already millions of dollars have been spent trying to combat global warming and before more is potentially wasted, government officials owe it to taxpayers to find out if the science behind it is good.
In response to the leak of information, some representatives are contradicting the presidents' actions. Rep. James Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., called the alleged cover-up "scientific fascism" and said he plans to attend the Copenhagen conference to tell world leaders that regardless of Obama’s promises to U.N. members, no new laws will be passed in the U.S. until it ends. Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., told interviewers in a Washington Times interview that he will push for a probe on the subject to see if the science was “cooked.”
"This thing is serious,” he said. “You think about the literally millions of dollars that have been thrown away on some of this stuff that they came out with."
