Cook calls Rohrabacher’s pseudoscience remarks a ‘disservice’

U.S. Rep. Dana Rohrabacher slammed warnings of climate change as bad science and alarmism in a speech on the House of Representatives floor Thursday.

In a lengthy speech condemning former Vice President Al Gore’s “An Inconvenient Truth,” the International Panel on Climate Change, as well as previous environmental cause celebres such as fears about holes in the ozone layer and acid rain, Rohrabacher claimed large parts of the environmental movement were mere “pseudoscience” to justify increased government regulation.

“I have no doubt that unless we thwart the onslaught of nonsense being foisted upon humankind in the name of man-made global warming, the next generation will be deprived of freedom, prosperity, and a healthy environment,” he said.

In a defensive move, he brought up a previous assertion that global warming might as well be “dinosaur flatulence,” calling it a joke blown out of proportion.

“I have to be very careful about such jokes,” he said. “I was making light of this supposition [about animal flatulence contributing to greenhouse gases] at a hearing, suggesting in jest, that perhaps dinosaur flatulence changed the climate back in their day. Well, it was reported as if I was serious, which demonstrates the total dishonesty and steely eyed fanaticism of those on the other side of this debate.”

Rohrabacher’s Democratic challenger, Mayor Debbie Cook, slammed him on the speech.

“He does a disservice to his district and his nation when he continues to bash the science behind climate change,” she said. “There’s nothing bad that comes from reducing our energy consumption. That helps us on every front, whether it’s national security, the environment, the economy, innovation — all of these things are improved when we address the challenge of climate change. I don’t know what purpose it serves when he continues to attack those who provide scientific data.”

— Michael Alexander