House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Rob Bishop has a message for both Democrats and Republicans: “Mellow out” on climate change.
The Utah Republican made the statement after Rep. Bruce Westerman, R-Ark., began questioning White House Council on Environmental Quality managing director Christy Goldfuss, who testified before the committee Wednesday on a new climate guidance issued by the administration.
Westerman criticized her political science degree as not proper science, suggesting that her background should disqualify her as an expert on climate change.
Bishop afterward quipped that Westerman should “be careful” because he too is a political science graduate, which he said, “You’re right, it qualifies me to sell shoes and pennies.”
However, Bishop didn’t step in to ask the committee to mellow out until after Rep. Jared Huffman, D-Calif., joked that he too had a political science degree, which gave him the option of law school or unemployment. Bishop fired back that Huffman didn’t go to law school, “so you went downhill.”
Huffman then criticized Republicans for being climate change deniers while scolding Donald Trump’s promise to leave the Paris climate change accord as a step backward.
Bishop stepped in: “Let me ask all members here, we have a long time between now and the end of the year in the lame-duck session, just to make sure you self regulate what you say, and the comments you make vis a vis anyone else here in the room — mellow them out.”
With one exception, he added. “Unless we are talking about the administration, then go after the jugular,” he quipped, which appeared to get a chuckle from Goldfuss, who answered “OK.”
Debbie Dingell, D-Mich., scolded the committee for the bickering and fighting, and defended the White House on its climate guidance for environmental reviews.
Goldfuss was testifying on behalf of the administration on a White House voluntary guidance directing all federal agencies to account for carbon emission in conducting standard environmental reviews for projects.
Bishop scolded the administration for finalizing a guidance that would raise the cost for everything from large energy and highway projects, to small construction jobs.
The top Democrat on the committee, Raul Grijalva of Arizona, said the hearing is really about “climate denial” and the Republican position that does not accept the scientific evidence that supports the fact that the Earth’s temperature is rising due to manmade activities.
“In fact, the majority on this committee has frequently given the climate deniers legitimacy by inviting them to testify,” Grijalva said. He then went on to scold Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas, the chairman of the House science committee, who he said is leading a “holy war against anyone who would dare ask whether the biggest oil company on the planet [Exxon Mobil] has broken the law in its quest to distort, delay or deny climate science.”
When Grijalva yielded back to Bishop in ending his remarks, the chairman quipped, “Thank you. It’s good to to see we are on the same page.”
