July 10, 2018
A group of Republican senators is calling for an investigation into National Science Foundation (NSF) grants designed to educate meteorologists about climate change, saying the program has moved beyond science and into political action according to a June 21, 2018 report from The Hill.
Sens. Ted Cruz (Texas), Rand Paul (Ky.), James Lankford (Okla.) and Jim Inhofe (Okla.) requested the probe in a June 20th letter to the NSF inspector general, saying the grants are “not science – it is propagandizing,” NBC News reported.
The letter states that the foundation has “issued several grants which seek to influence political and social debate rather than conduct scientific research.” The senators say that issuing the grants might violate the Hatch Act, which prohibits federal employees from taking public political stances, as well as NSF’s mission, according to NBC News.
The federal program, called Climate Central, has been in place for six years and has taught more than 500 meteorologists about global warming, NBC News reported.
Climate Central CEO Ben Strauss pushed back against the GOP senators’ claims.
“Climate Central is not an advocacy organization, and the scientific consensus on climate change is not a political viewpoint,” Strauss said in an email to NBC News.
Several top Trump administration officials, including Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt, have cast doubt on the scientific community’s consensus regarding the causes of climate change.
Pruitt said last year that human behavior is not a “primary contributor” to climate change.
What this means to you
A group of Republican senators – Cruz (Texas), Paul (Ky.), Lankford (Okla.) and Inhofe (Okla.) – is calling for an investigation into National Science Foundation grants designed to educate meteorologists about climate change, saying the program has moved beyond science and into political action.
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