The EPA’s decision to prevent its own scientists from speaking about climate change at a conference in Rhode Island on Monday prompted protests and criticism from lawmakers and activists who said it’s just the latest effort by the Trump administration to downplay global warming.

Protesters wearing tape over their mouths and holding signs gathered outside the event, the State of the Narragansett Bay and Watershed program.

Recommended Stories

The Senate map looks better for Republicans than the polls suggest

Will the Republicans and rural voters who aren’t answering pollsters show up on Election Day?

They judged foreign governments for a living. Now they’re judging ours