Trump Denies Science And Facts While Biden Issues Bold Call To Action On Climate
Washington, D.C. – Today, both President Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden addressed the wildfires raging across the West, and Americans were presented with two very different approaches to dealing with the climate crisis.
Trump made a bizarre claim that the world would soon start cooling. When told by a state official that science disagrees, Trump responded with “I don’t think science knows actually.” Of course, there is near-universal agreement that climate change is fueling the catastrophic wildfires in the West, along with increasingly frequent, damaging, and deadly storms.
“Today’s remarks show just how stark the contrast is between the two candidates on climate,” said Lori Lodes, Climate Power 2020 Executive Director. “It’s a common refrain from Donald Trump — to ignore the facts, deny the science, and refuse to listen to the experts. It’s the same science denial from Trump that has resulted in nearly 200,000 Americans dead from coronavirus and left us without a plan to address either the pandemic or the climate crisis. Joe Biden stated unequivocally that climate change is real and it’s a crisis all of us are facing, no matter where we live, and that we must take immediate, bold action to combat the climate crisis.”
Today’s dueling appearances came as 10 Western states continue to burn, Hurricane Sally is preparing to make landfall on the Gulf Coast, four other storms swirl in the Atlantic, and the skies of Washington, D.C. were filled with haze produced by smoke from the Western fires.
Trump is the most anti-nature president in U.S. history. He calls climate change “a hoax,” and, before today, did not address the wildfires once during four dozen public appearances in recent weeks. And today, he spent his time in California spreading more climate denial and lies about forest management. Meanwhile, former Vice President Biden has proposed investing $2 trillion in clean energy infrastructure over the next 4 years, rejoining the Paris climate agreement, and said he will ensure that longstanding environmental justice and environmental racism issues are addressed.
On Climate Change:
- TRUMP: “It’ll start getting cooler. You just watch.”
- BIDEN: “Donald Trump’s climate denial may not have caused the record fires, record floods, and record hurricanes. But if he gets a second term, these hellish events will become more common, more devastating, and more deadly.”
On Science:
- TRUMP: “Well, I don’t think science knows actually.”
- BIDEN: “The impacts of climate change don’t pick and choose. That’s because it’s not a partisan phenomenon. It’s science. And our response should be the same. Grounded in science. Acting together. All of us.”