Among the most “dire consequences” of Donald Trump’s presidential election victory this year is what is already shaping up to be his disastrous policy positions on climate change, as Seth Meyers laid out in his latest “Closer Look” segment Wednesday night.
Trump’s statements on the issue have “not been promising,” Meyers said, understating the facts, before quoting the president-elect’s “infamous claim” that the concept of climate change was “created by and for the Chinese.” The host added, “As opposed to Trump, who was created by and for the Russians.”
But while it seemed that after the election the influence of Ivanka Trump on her father might soften his ignorance on climate science, those hopes went out the window when Trump named climate-denying friend of the oil industry Scott Pruitt to head up the Environmental Protection Agency.
On top of that, Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Energy is former Texas Gov. Rick Perry, who once forgot that was one of three federal agencies he wanted to eliminate. Perry has claimed climate scientists “manipulated data” for their own personal financial gain.
“You think climate scientists are getting rich off this stuff?” Meyers asked. “Have you seen how they dress? They look like they were shoved into a Goodwill store naked and given 90 seconds to pick out an outfit.”
Quoting a recent Daily Beast article that found Perry took four chemistry courses in college and got two Cs, a D and an F, including a “D in something called ‘Meat,’” Meyers asked, “How do you get a D in ‘Meat?’ Are you a Chipotle?”
“Maybe the worst thing about the Trump administration’s climate agenda is that they’ll have a compliant Republican Congress, ready and willing to kowtow to the oil and gas lobby,” the host noted. This “dire” outlook is exactly why Meyers said those who believe in science need to keep bringing attention to it, adding, “It’s literally life or death.”