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8/1/2016 CLIMATE: Fossil fuel backers accused of 'calculated disinformation' — Thursday, June 23, 2016 — www.eenews.net
THE BEST WAY TO TRACK CONGRESS
CLIMATE:
Fossil fuel backers accused of 'calculated disinformation'
Amanda Reilly, E&E reporter
Published: Thursday, June 23, 2016
Progressive Democrats this week fired the latest shot in the monthslong war over what and when fossil fuel
companies knew about climate change and whether they tried to hide the information.
At a forum yesterday on Capitol Hill, the Congressional Progressive Caucus accused the fossil fuel industry
and its advocates of using the same "calculated disinformation" tactics of the tobacco industry to block
investigations of whether smoking caused cancer.
"The fossil fuel industry's concerted effort to confuse the public on the certainty of climate science is
endangering nearly everyone on this planet, born or yet to be bom," Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.), co-chairman
of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, alleged. "All for one simple reason: money."
While most of the action has taken place in the states, members of Congress have increasingly weighed in on
whether Exxon Mobil Corp. and other fossil fuel companies misled the public on climate change.
Along with trying to make the case that Big Oil is the new Big Tobacco, Democrats have stood behind state
attorneys general who are investigating Exxon's past climate change statements.
"Companies can mislead consumers, but if they mislead investors, that's a crime," said Rep, Ted Lieu (D-Calif.),
who has asked the Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission to launch its own
investigations into Exxon over its past climate change statements.
Republicans, on the other hand, in both the House and Senate have called on the federal government to halt
any potential investigation into oil and gas companies overtheirwork in the area of climate change.
They've also sought to paint the climate activities of state attorneys general and their investigations into Exxon
as part of a well-funded plot by environmentalists to stifle the free speech of those who do not believe in manmade
global warming.
Don't expect this to end anytime soon, predicted Mike McKenna, a Republican energy strategist.
"One side's got a good villain. The other side's got a good conspiracy," McKenna said in a recent interview.
Efforts to link Big Oil and Big Tobacco
For its part, Exxon has denied that it's tried to cover up information about climate change risks from the public
and investors,
"The great irony here is that we've acknowledged the risks of climate change for more than a decade," a
company spokesman said last week, "have supported a carbon tax as the better policy option and spent more
than $7 billion on research and technologies to reduce emissions."
Yesterday, progressive Democrats enlisted environmental and scientific experts to help them make linkages
between oil and tobacco companies. Speaking at the forum were Kathy Mulvey of the Union of Concerned
Scientists, former Exxon researcher Ed Garvey, Harvard professor and author of the book "Merchants of Doubt"
Naomi Oreskes, and Natasha Lamb, director of equity research and shareholder engagement at Arjuna
Capital.
"Internal documents show thatsome ofthe largest fossil fuel companies have worked behind the scenes for
years to deceive the public about the reality of global warming, long after they knew the truth about climate
science," Mulvey said, citing reports issued by the Union of Concerned Scientists over the past few years.
Oreskes told the forum about her work that led to the her book, which alleges that the same individuals and
organizations who defended tobacco companies as they were investigated by the government helped sow
doubt about man-made climate change.
This is not the first time that Democrats have tried to link fossil fuel companies to the tobacco industry.
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