Defying Bush And Cheney, White House Science Adviser Acknowledges Man-Made Warming Is A Fact

[babylonsister]

http://thinkprogress.org/2007/09/14/defying-bush-and-cheney-white-house-science-adviser-acknowledges-man-made-warming-is-a-fact/

Defying Bush And Cheney, White House Science Adviser Acknowledges Man-Made Warming Is A Fact

In an interview with the BBC, Professor John Marburger, Bush’s chief science adviser, said it was an “unequivocal” fact that climate change is man-made and that greenhouse gases emitted by human activity are to blame.

Marburger said he “strongly agrees” with the IPCC reports and “supports its conclusions.” He added:

I think there is widespread agreement on certain basics, and one of the most important is that we are producing far more CO2 from fossil fuels than we ought to be. And it’s going to lead to trouble unless we can begin to reduce the amount of fossil fuels we are burning and using in our economies. <…>

The CO2 accumulates in the atmosphere and there’s no end point, it just gets hotter and hotter, and so at some point it becomes unliveable.

Watch the BBC report at link~

Roger Harrabin, the BBC climate reporter who conducted the interview, noted that “historically, the White House has given a number of different messages on climate change. You hear one message from Dick Cheney saying that there’s a debate we’ll have to carry on.” On the other hand, Marburger says the science is undisputed. So far, Cheney has been winning the battle in setting U.S. policy.

Just this past February, Cheney asserted, “There does not appear to be a consensus” that global warming is “caused by man.” Bush has repeatedly echoed Cheney’s line that there is a “debate” over the science.

Harrabin noted that “there is very little pressure from the public,” causing a kind of “stasis” in the climate change debate. “The headway in the U.S. is very slow,” he said, “and that feeds into the international process where other countries are looking at the U.S. and saying, hey, you’re the big emitter, if you’re not cutting, then how’s that going to impact on our industries.”

[Buzz Clik]

1. That's likely to frost James Connaughton.

Marburger may be the WH science advisor, but Connaughtor is the Karl Rove of WH environmental policy. Connaughton is a very intelligent and quite a clever crafter of careful spin. Connaughton's strategy is very similar to that of Bjon Lomborg -- present known facts as facts, but deny the implications. It's a powerful approach and more difficult to dispute than brainless idiots such as Steven Milloy of junkscience.com.

I'm guessing that Marburger's pronouncements will be dismissed with either no comment at all or a simple chuckle and a "Other prominent scientists disagree."

[kestrel91316]

2. kestrel's prediction: Prof Marburger will soon announce his retirement,

citing the need to spend more time with his family. Bush will appoint Pat Robertson as his replacement.

[redqueen]

3. Wonder how much longer he'll last.

Bushie doesn't like people who don't keep inconvenient facts to themselves.

[babylonsister]

4. Really. I guess he's one to watch, but I salute him for saying it. nt