The Trump administration has quietly brought on three scientists who have long dismissed mainstream climate science, raising fears that federal climate policy may take a dangerous detour.
Maxine Joselow reports for The New York Times.
In short:
- Three well-known climate skeptics — Steven Koonin, John Christy, and Roy Spencer — have been hired at the U.S. Department of Energy after the Trump administration removed hundreds of government scientists.
- These hires could play a role in dismantling the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's 2009 endangerment finding, which underpins federal authority to regulate greenhouse gases.
- Critics warn the move could sideline proven science in favor of fringe views, even as climate disasters — from heat domes to deadly floods — intensify.
Key quote:
“What this says is that the administration has no respect for the actual science, which overwhelmingly points in the direction of a growing crisis as we continue to warm the planet through fossil-fuel burning, the consequences of which we’ve seen play out in recent weeks in the form of deadly heat domes and floods here in the U.S.,”
— Michael Mann, climate scientist at the University of Pennsylvania
Why this matters:
The Energy Department's enlistment of scientists who downplay human-driven climate change threatens to stall or reverse public health protections tied to emissions and air quality. As the U.S. contends with extreme heat, floods, and climate-linked illness, decisions rooted in denial could carry deadly consequences.
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