‘I Don’t Know That It’s Man-Made,’ Trump Says of Climate Change. It Is.
WASHINGTON President Trump now denies denying climate change. Mr. Trump backed off his . But he also made several new assertions unsupported by science. Heres a rundown of the presidents first extensive comments on climate change since and the United Nations warned that time is running out to stave off the worst consequences of rising temperatures. What Mr. Trump said I think somethings happening. Somethings changing and it will change back again. Mr. Trump, who has , went on to tell his interviewer, Lesley Stahl , Im not denying climate change, but it could very well go back. The facts Long-term average global temperatures in the past 115 years: upward. The rise of 1.8 degrees Fahrenheit since the start of the Industrial Revolution has already led to more intense wildfire seasons and the melting of Arctic sea ice. Researchers reported Thursday that 2017 average global temperatures are just below the record set in 2016. The result was surprising because there was no El Nino, the weather pattern usually linked to record-setting heat. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change warned last week that , including food shortages, by 2040. Could those conditions go back, as Mr. Trump suggests? In the National Climate Assessment report on science approved by the White House in November, top federal scientists found . The global long-term warming trend is unambiguous, they wrote. And as for the idea of natural cycles, they added, we find no convincing evidence that natural variability can account for the amount of global warming observed over the industrial era. What Mr. Trump said I dont think theres a hoax. I do think theres probably a difference. But I dont know that its man-made. The facts The same National Climate Assessment report, vetted by 13 federal agencies, finds no convincing alternative explanation that anything other than human activity, particularly the burning of fossil fuels and destruction of forests, is to blame. A scientific report on climate change obtained by The New York Times shows that warming is already having a large effect on the United States. that 97 percent or more of actively publishing climate scientists agree that warming trends are the result of human activity, while also listing 200 worldwide scientific organizations that hold to the same findings. The other approximately 3 percent that reject anthropogenic warming? Turns out scientists went back to try to recreate the findings of those studies . What Mr. Trump said I will say this. I dont want to give trillions and trillions of dollars. I dont want to lose millions and millions of jobs. I dont want to be put at a disadvantage. The facts Here the president is referring in large part to the Paris Agreement, the voluntary pact among nearly 200 nations to curb rising greenhouse gas emissions, from which the Trump administration has vowed to withdraw. In announcing that the United States would abandon the Paris deal, Mr. Trump argued that it would have cost 2.7 million American jobs by 2025 and untold economic revenue. The numbers came from . And while economics is less precise than science, here is another for balance: Stanford University researchers this year found that meeting the goals of the Paris deal in avoided climate damages, far outweighing most estimated costs. What Mr. Trump said Look, scientists also have a political agenda. Asked about scientists who say hurricanes and other extreme weather events are worsening, Mr. Trump replied, Youd have to show me the scientists because they have a very big political agenda. The facts No doubt climate change has become politicized. And climate skeptics Sunday night . But scientists took umbrage at the notion that their research has an agenda. Here are three in their own words: Katharine Hayhoe , climate scientist, Texas Tech University: A thermometer isnt Democrat or Republican. It doesnt give us a different answer depending on how we vote . Andrew Dessler , climate scientist, Texas A&M University: At its heart, this is just a wacky conspiracy theory, he wrote. Its important to realize that theres never been a conspiracy by a huge field of science. And this would have to be an extremely massive conspiracy, considering the thousands of scientists working on this. On the other hand, there have been many examples (cigarettes, anyone?) where political advocates have tried to cast doubt on science that is extremely solid. Thats whats going on here. Donald Wuebbles , climate scientist, University of Illinois: No scientists have political agendas. Thats just an excuse. Larry Kudlow, the presidents top economic adviser, and Senator Marco Rubio, Republican of Florida, also distanced themselves on Sunday from the I.P.C.C. report. Both made claims similar to Mr. Trumps about a supposed disagreement among scientists about the role of human activity in climate change. For more on climate change, how we know its happening and how we know humans are responsible, read our Q. and A. here: For more news on climate and the environment, .