The chairman of the House Science, Space and Technology Committee announced he has subpoenaed the Democratic New York and Massachusetts state attorneys general over their investigations into Exxon Mobil and anti-climate change groups.
The subpoenas were sent Wednesday regarding the subpoenas issued by New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman and Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey. They are the only two of a group of 20 attorneys general who got together earlier this year at Schneiderman’s behest to promise to work on climate change using their law enforcement powers.
Now Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas, says they’re criminalizing science that says climate change isn’t real.
“The actions by the attorneys general amount to a form of extortion,” he said. “They want the companies to settle out of court so they can use the funds for their investigations.”
It’s the latest step in a legal fight sparked by reports that Exxon Mobil covered up climate science in the 1970s that showed the globe would warm due to the burning of fossil fuels.
Earlier this summer, the Democratic attorney general of the U.S. Virgin Islands backed off subpoenas of Exxon Mobil and the anti-climate change free market group Competitive Enterprise Institute after receiving intense criticism from Republicans.
Smith used his position as chairman of the House science committee to increase the pressure on the attorneys general, requesting documents and communications about their investigations several times. He said Wednesday’s action showed the attorneys general were willing to violate the First Amendment’s right to free speech in pursuit of political goals.
Smith said it may be the first time a congressional committee has subpoenaed sitting attorneys general.
“It is regrettable that two state attorneys general and several organizations continue to threaten legitimate scientific debate about climate change,” he said. “It is necessary for the committee to issue subpoenas in order for the American people to understand the negative impacts of the attorneys general.”
Eight other organizations received subpoenas from Smith and the committee on Wednesday. The subpoenas are asking for documents and communications related to what Smith called the coordinated efforts of Schneiderman and Healey and environmental groups to target scientists, companies and organizations for speaking their minds about their anti-climate change views.
In a letter sent before the press conference announcing the subpoenas, Leslie Dubeck, a lawyer in Schneiderman’s office, called Smith’s actions unconstitutional and denied that he’s investigating the research of scientists.
Instead, Dubeck argued, he’s looking into whether Exxon Mobil misled its investors about what burning fossil fuels such as crude oil could do to the planet.
“It is clear the committee does not have the authority that it has claimed — i.e., to conduct oversight to address the committee’s concern that a duly elected, constitutional officer of a separate sovereign government may be taking actions that ‘run counter’ to his duties under state law,” Dubeck wrote.
But Smith brushed off possible federalism concerns.
“I don’t see that this has anything to do with states’ rights,” he said. “Again, it’s freedom of speech, it’s scientific inquiry, it’s protecting the right of individuals to have different opinion on various subjects, in this case climate change.”
Rep. Darin LaHood, R-Ill., said as a former prosecutor at the state and federal levels that he didn’t believe the attorneys general should be dealing with restricting freedom of speech.
LaHood compared the state investigations to what would happen in a “third-world country” where a citizen would be prosecuted by the government for disagreeing.
“It’s bullying, it’s intimidation, it’s harassment for folks who are engaged in researched, forming opinions and expressing opinions,” he said.
It’s not the first time Smith has used his subpoena powers to investigate government officials regarding climate change. Smith made headlines last year and earlier this year over an investigation into a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration study that showed the rate of global warming was not slowing, as was previously thought.
Ken Kimmell, the president of the Union of Concerned Scientists, said Smith is overstepping his bounds, as he did in the NOAA investigation. The Union of Concerned Scientists is one of the groups being subpoenaed by Smith.
Kimmell said the group was willing to work with committee staff to release the requested information, but Smith decided to issue a subpoena anyway. He said that showed Smith is motivated by political machinations, rather than seeking the truth.
“Smith is misusing the House science committee’s subpoena power in a way that should concern everyone across the political spectrum,” Kimmell said in a statement. “Today, the target is UCS and others concerned about climate change. But if these kinds of subpoenas are allowed, who will be next and on what basis?”
