While Hillary Clinton and Al Gore were in Florida to talk climate change—and, incidentally, the importance of getting out to vote—climate scientist Michael Mann expanded on some of the issues they brought up.
With 1,200 miles of coastline and 5 million residents who will be displaced by just 10 feet of sea level rise—something we are likely now committed to, though how quickly it will happen is still rather uncertain—Florida arguably has more to lose by unmitigated climate change than any other state. What is Republican Governor Rick Scott’s plan for responding to the threat? How about banning the use of the terms climate change and global warming in all official state communications and publications.
Florida’s junior US Senator and former presidential hopeful, Marco Rubio, rates little better. His approach to dealing with climate change is to attack the scientists, deny any human role in global warming, an oppose all viable policy solutions.
Mann was also on hand this week to talk about the relationship between climate change and Hurricane Matthew.
Matthew is a very good example of a storm that was unique, unprecedented, in certain respects. It intensified far more quickly than any other storm that we’ve seen in modern history, basically going from not even a tropical depression to a near-hurricane-strength storm over the course of, you know, less than half a day, and then, the next day, of course, strengthening into a major hurricane, a Category 5 hurricane.
Replacing Marco Rubio with Patrick Murphy wouldn’t just help Florida, and wouldn’t just help Democrats gain a majority in the Senate. It would help to put legislation in place that helps the whole nation address the challenge of climate change—and get our heads out of the sand.
Can you donate $3 to help Patrick Murphy retire Climate Change denier Marco Rubio?