By Ben Jealous
Ben Jealous
When the storms come harder and the heat comes earlier, it does not matter who you voted for. You still have to rebuild your home. You still have to find a way to breathe clean air. You still have to keep your family safe.
That is why what the Trump administration is doing right now to the National Climate Assessment should make every American furious.
This week, Trump dismissed the scientists writing the next National Climate Assessment and announced they will be “reevaluating” its scope. That is political talk for rewriting the truth.
The National Climate Assessment is supposed to be our country’s report card, providing an “up-to-date and comprehensive assessment of climate change in the United States.” It is supposed to detail how Americans, in every part of the country, are being impacted by climate change in their communities and everyday lives, and how we can prepare and be ready for what’s to come – for our health, for our financial wellbeing, and more.
But the Trump administration wants to twist it. It was reported last month the administration might try to turn everything we know about climate science on its head and falsely spin the climate crisis into a good thing for humanity. That would be propaganda – not science.
As deadly heat, floods, fires, and storms come faster and harder every year, this could not be happening at a worse time.
Last year was the hottest year ever recorded. Not just here, but across the globe. And this year, western American cities like Phoenix and Palm Springs shattered their early spring heat records. The oceans are warming at an unprecedented and alarming rate; the Great Lakes are warming even faster. And from California to New Jersey, wildfires rage.
When it gets hotter, the air gets dirtier. Hospitals see more cases of asthma, heart problems, and heat stroke. Families see higher health care bills. Workers – especially those in construction, farming, and delivery jobs – face real danger just doing their jobs.
Meanwhile, the cost of living keeps rising. By pushing dirty fuels and trying to stop the shift to clean energy, the Trump administration is setting families up for higher electricity bills too. Solar and wind are already cheaper than coal and gas in most places. But without honest climate science guiding policy, big utilities and fossil fuel companies will keep squeezing working people while raking in profits.
None of this is an accident. It is part of a pattern.
Back in January, many of us warned that Donald Trump’s inner circle had a plan to gut climate science across the government. To replace facts with polluters’ wishful thinking. To erase the hard truths we must face together.
Now we are seeing it play out. And the cost will be measured in real lives, real homes, and real threats to our future. Higher temperatures strain power grids, buckle roads, and endanger seniors who cannot afford air conditioning.
Donald Trump’s team can spin fairy tales all they want. But you cannot lie your way out of a flood. You cannot spin your way out of a superstorm. You cannot wish away the next record-breaking heat wave.
As a country, we must meet hard truths with hard work. But that starts with honesty. It starts with a commitment to science over spin. It starts with loving our children and grandchildren enough to fight for the future they deserve.
Because the truth is simple: Climate change is hurting us now. And if we let propaganda replace science, it will only get worse.
There is too much at stake to let that happen.
Ben Jealous is the Executive Director of the Sierra Club and a Professor of Practice at the University of Pennsylvania.