An environmental activist group is naming Marco Rubio one of its "Daily Dirty Denier$" based on his evolving stance on climate change. The NRDC Action Fund, which is affiliated with but is a separate organization from the Natural Resources Defense Council, has been highlighting members of Congress during the August recess who "allow polluters to foul our air by casting dirty votes and accepting dirty money."
"Senator Marco Rubio's eyes are looking toward the White House," the NRDC Action Fund release begins. "But instead, he should be reading up on basic science. Though 97 percent of climate scientists agree that climate change is happening, Sen. Rubio still can't get his facts straight. In May of 2014, he said, 'I do not believe that human activity is causing these dramatic changes to our climate the way these scientists are portraying it.'"
But the group notes that in 2007 as Speaker of the Florida House, Rubio seemed to believe the importance of solving climate change. So what shifted, they ask?
Well, the amount of money pumped into his campaign coffers from "polluter interests," the NRDC Action Fund says. Specifically, $281,716 he's received from the oil and gas industry since 2009.
Since 2011, he has consistently voted for the polluters and against a safe climate. He has voted to continue making American breathe in mercury and other air toxins, pushed to expand offshore drilling, continued major subsidies to the oil and gas industry, and voted to block the EPA from cleaning up carbon pollution.The NRDC Action Fund says it will target 20 members of Congress in all. On Monday Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell made the list, and on Tuesday Congressman Tim Walberg (R-Michigan) received the honors.
Rubio's fossil-fueled voting record is so bad that he has a lifetime score of only 11 percent from the League of Conservation Voters. And, no surprise, - his largest campaign contributor is the Club for Growth, a major force in conservative politics with strong ties to the Koch Brothers and their network of pro-pollution donors. Not only that, Sen. Rubio was specially selected to be 1 of only 2 Senators to speak at the Koch Brothers' 2014 annual summit of conservative billionaires..
Meanwhile, Senator Rubio was visiting NASA’s Kennedy Space Center this afternoon. To commemorate the occasion, the Democratic National Committee issued a press release with these fun facts:
The Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral area are threatened by storm surges that regularly breach dunes near the launch pads.
NASA has concluded that 97 percent of climate scientists agree that climate-warming trends over the past century are very likely due to human activity. In May, the White House released the Third National Climate Assessment, which included many contributions and studies from NASA scientists.
Florida’s sea levels are rising, and people and property are at risk of harm. The work that scientists at agencies like NASA do every day is critical to Floridians’ safety.