Climate Denier Scott Pruitt Faces Protests at Senate Hearing as 2016 Is Declared Hottest Year Ever

Democracy Now! Published on Jan 19, 2017

http://democracynow.org – On Wednesday, scientists with both NASA and NOAA—the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration—confirmed 2016 was the hottest year on record, topping the previous record set in 2015, which topped the previous record only one year earlier. The unprecedented warming of the planet due to human-caused climate change comes as Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt testified in front of the Senate Wednesday during his confirmation hearing to be the head of the Environmental Protection Agency. Pruitt has long denied the overwhelming scientific consensus on climate change. Dozens of people protested outside his hearing. At least three people were arrested. We hear Sen. Bernie Sanders questioning Pruitt, and speak to Wenonah Hauter, executive director of Food & Water Watch.

Trump Picks Agribusiness & Chemical Industry Darling Sonny Perdue as Secretary of Agriculture

Democracy Now!

Published on Jan 19, 2017

http://democracynow.org – Trump has just nominated former Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue to be secretary of agriculture. Perdue ran a grain and fertilizer business before becoming Georgia’s first Republican governor since Reconstruction. Environmental activists have slammed Perdue for receiving hundreds of thousands of dollars in subsidies for chemical corporations and factory farming. We speak to Wenonah Hauter, executive director of Food & Water Watch.

Food Disruption, Climate Change, and Ocean Sources of Food: 3 parts

Paul Beckwith

Published on Jan 18, 2017

I tell the story of how our global food supply, derived from land and ocean, is being severely stressed by climate change caused extreme weather events, ocean warming, acidification and stratification. Destructive farming practices, overfishing and poor aquaculture practices are also exacerbating the problem.

Abrupt climate change cannot be dismissed any longer. We are in a global climate change emergency, and very soon it will severely stress large portions of our global food supply leading to global societal chaos.

Published on Jan 21, 2017

Part 3:

Can global sea-level rise 7 meters by 2070?

Paul Beckwith   Published on Apr 15, 2014

Global sea levels rose about 2 mm per year over the last century, but this rate increased to 3.4 mm/yr over the last decade. As Greenland and Antarctic ice cap melt rates accelerate, they open up the likely scenario of a global sea level rise of 7 meters (21 feet) by 2070.

Revised video:

Paul Beckwith   Published on Jul 20, 2015

About a year ago I suggested the answer was YES. I revisit the question in light of the latest science.

Paul Beckwith – Sea Level Rise and Coastal Cities – University Of Ottawa, Laboratory for Paleoclimatology

See also 2015 video:

Paul Beckwith     Published on Jul 20, 2015

About a year ago I suggested the answer was YES. I revisit the question in light of the latest science.

and original video from 2014:

Paul Beckwith   Published on Apr 15, 2014

Global sea levels rose about 2 mm per year over the last century, but this rate increased to 3.4 mm/yr over the last decade. As Greenland and Antarctic ice cap melt rates accelerate, they open up the likely scenario of a global sea level rise of 7 meters (21 feet) by 2070.

Trump Interior Pick Ryan Zinke Says He’d Review Reversing Ban on Arctic Drilling

The Senate also held confirmation hearings Tuesday for Montana Congressmember Ryan Zinke, who is Trump’s nominee to lead the Interior Department. This is Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski questioning Zinke about whether he would attempt to roll back President Obama’s ban on oil drilling in the Arctic.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski: “Will you commit to a formal review of all of the Obama administration’s actions that took resource-bearing lands and waters in Alaska effectively off the table, including the decisions that specifically prevented the leasing of those lands and those waters for development, and determine whether or not they can be reversed?”

Rep. Ryan Zinke: “Yes. I think the president-elect has said that we want to be energy independent.”

Investigation: Did Trump’s Defense Secretary Nominee James Mattis Commit War Crimes in Iraq?

Democracy Now!

Published on Jan 12, 2017

http://democracynow.org – Today, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for defense secretary, James “Mad Dog” Mattis, faces his Senate confirmation hearing. Mattis reportedly received his nickname “Mad Dog” after leading U.S. troops during the 2004 battle of Fallujah in Iraq, where he is accused of carrying out war crimes by our guest, Aaron Glantz, a senior reporter at Reveal from The Center for Investigative Reporting.

Do Exxon’s Climate Denial & “Trail of Carnage” on Human Rights Make Tillerson Unfit for State Dept?

Democracy Now!

Published on Jan 12, 2017

http://democracynow.org – At the Senate confirmation hearing for secretary of state nominee and former ExxonMobil CEO Rex Tillerson, he refused to answer questions about the oil giant’s long history of denying the science of climate change, telling Senators that scientific literature on climate change is “inconclusive.”During the hearing, human rights concerns were also raised repeatedly. Tillerson refused to label Saudi Arabia a human rights violator, and avoided condemning Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte over thousands of extrajudicial killings carried out under Duterte’s so-called “war on drugs.” We are joined from San Francisco by oil and energy journalist Antonia Juhasz.

Trump Ignores Ethics Experts Urging Him to Divest from His Businesses & Puts Sons In Charge Instead

Democracy Now!

Published on Jan 12, 2017

http://democracynow.org – At his first press conference since July, President-elect Donald Trump addressed questions about his business interests and asserted that, as president, he would be exempt from possible conflicts of interest. The Trump Organization is an umbrella company for his hundreds of investments in real estate, brands and other businesses. But Trump said he would not follow advice from ethics experts to divest or create a completely blind trust, and instead announced he will hand over management of the Trump Organization to his sons. The head of the Office of Government Ethics slammed President-elect Trump’s plan to separate himself from his business, calling it “wholly inadequate.” We get response from John Wonderlich, executive director of the Sunlight Foundation.