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Klobuchar Denounces Administration's Deliberate Effort to Suppress Information on Climate Change

Former EPA officials confirm that the White House withheld information in attempt to downplay the threat of climate change

July 8, 2008

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar today denounced the Administration for their deliberate efforts to withhold information from the public on climate change, including redacting pages of testimony before Congress.  Jason K. Burnett, formerly the Senior Adviser on Climate Change at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), today confirmed that the Administration pushed for major deletions in testimony last fall by Dr. Julie Gerberding, the Director of the Center for Disease Control, before the Environment and Public Works Committee on the health effects of global warming.

“Today’s revelations confirm what we thought – that this Administration engaged in a deliberate effort to downplay and cover-up the dangers of climate change,” said Klobuchar. “To intentionally hide facts from the American people is irresponsible, and undermines our efforts to address one of the greatest challenges facing our country.”

Last fall, Klobuchar joined U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) in calling attention to the deleted testimony.  According to the White House, that information was removed because it wasn't consistent with scientific findings even though much of the redacted testimony is found in recent IPCC reports. 

The Administration also struck Gerberding’s original testimony that provided an assessment of how climate change was likely to produce increase in the severity and duration of forest fires and strains on water supplies as regional precipitation declines and mountain snowpacks are depleted.   Klobuchar said the Administration must speak the truth on climate change instead of downplaying the facts on climate change. 

“In America, I believe our scientists and public health officers should be free to offer their honest views without fear or favor, especially when testifying to Congress,” said Klobuchar.  “Director Geberding’s initial draft did present the facts.  But the final testimony she gave fell short of that pledge because the White House eliminated discussion of the threats to public health posed by global warming.  This is just the latest incident in what has been a pattern of this administration attempting to suppress science.”

Klobuchar said that if the EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson does not comply with Congressional requests for documents related to the Agency’s finding that global warming poses a danger to the public, she will push for more hearings to bring the hidden information to light.

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