More administration global warming censorship? The Associated Press reported that the White House “severely edited congressional testimony given [on October 23] by the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on the impact of climate change on health, removing specific scientific references to potential health risks, according to two sources familiar with the documents….It was eviscerated,” said a CDC official familiar with both the OMB-approved testimony and the original censored draft.
“Her testimony before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee had much less information on health risks than a much longer draft version Gerberding submitted to the White House Office of Management and Budget for review in advance of her appearance,” the AP reported.
Thanks to the source(s) at CDC (and possibly elsewhere) who blew the whistle on this. This administration continues to demonstrate its penchant for playing down global warming and doing the work of the disinformation campaign—focused now on turning public attention away from honest discussion of climate change impacts. Now the original testimony should be made public without delay. The administration has forfeited any legitimate claim to confidentiality on the matter of science communication.
Statement by Senator Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, calling on White house to release Dr. Gerberding’s uncensored testimony.
For more on political interference with climate change communication:
Redacting the Science of Climate Change: An Investigative and Synthesis Report
by Tarek Maaserani, Government Accountability Project, March 2007
Atmosphere of Pressure: Political Interference in Federal Climate Science,
A report of the Union of Concerned Scientists and the Government Accountability Project, February 2007
Testimony of Rick Piltz, Director, Climate Science Watch, before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Hearing on Allegations of Political Interference with the Work of Government Climate Change Scientists, January 30, 2007
Testimony of Rick Piltz, Director, Climate Science Watch, before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, Hearing on Climate Change Research and Scientific Integrity, February 7, 2007
House Science Committee takes a step toward protecting honest climate science communication (March 30, 2007, posting)