Day 673: Trump still thinks climate change is a myth; government report direly warns otherwise

Donald Trump has made it clear over the years that does not believe the scientific evidence of climate change.

He frequently confuses weather — short-term atmospheric changes — and climate — atmospheric conditions over decades-long periods. Trump sees cold weather one day and uses that as “proof” that climate change isn’t real, as he did Wednesday.

Since he dismisses the idea that climate change is real, he fails to comprehend the effects that such changes will have on future generations in all facets of life, including personal health, the economy, technology and population movement.

Luckily, the rest of the federal government does not share his ignorance.

Though it’s unclear why a monumental report about something world-altering was quietly dumped on Black Friday, the rebukes to Trump’s views and the upholding of proven science is significant. The National Climate Assessment represents the work of hundreds of experts analyzing decades of research. Its warnings are dire.

The report warns, repeatedly and directly, that climate change could soon imperil the American way of life, transforming every region of the country, imposing frustrating costs on the economy, and harming the health of virtually every citizen.

Most significantly, the National Climate Assessment — which is endorsed by nasa, noaa, the Department of Defense, and 10 other federal scientific agencies — contradicts nearly every position taken on the issue by President Donald Trump. Where the president has insisted that fighting global warming will harm the economy, the report responds: Climate change, if left unchecked, could eventually cost the economy hundreds of billions of dollars per year, and kill thousands of Americans to boot. Where the president has said that the climate will “probably” “change back,” the report replies: Many consequences of climate change will last for millennia, and some (such as the extinction of plant and animal species) will be permanent.

The report could not be more unambiguous: this is a now issue. Humans are the primary cause for climate change and the only way to reverse it is to actively search for solutions today. Failing to do anything has catastrophic potential to citizens, cities, the economy and the stability of the nation as a whole.

The U.S. does not presently have a leader ready to take action because despite what virtually every scientist is saying and has been saying, Trump sees that it’s snowing outside. And that must mean those scientists are wrong.

673 days in, 789 to go

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