Rightwing attitudes toward science

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For the record, Pence is wrong about our country having the cleanest air and water in the world. I know you’re all shocked. Hey, I’d like to laugh in Pence’s face, too. Wouldn’t we all? But climate change is serious, and this administration is not taking it seriously..

Jake Tapper laughs in Pence’s face: ‘We don’t have the cleanest air and water in the world’ – Alternet.org

See the curious interchange between Pence and Tapper where Pence:

• Refusing to say whether climate change is a threat (but invoking science!)
  
• Argues the US has the cleanest water and air..
  

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Rod Schoonover has resigned as a State Department intelligence official “in protest” over the White House’s decision to block him from presenting evidence and data on the impacts of climate change in Congressional testimony, the Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday. The report cited anonymous State Department officials as sources on the development. Previous reporting had revealed that the White House had blocked the written testimony.

Trump administration official resigns ‘in protest’ after the White House blocked his testimony on evidence of climate change: report – Alternet.org

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Eleven Oregon Republican lawmakers are on the run from the law, having fled the state Senate in Salem on Thursday to deny quorum for a vote on a major climate change bill. On Friday, state lawmakers announced they were shutting down the state capitol after receiving threats from militia groups who support the Republicans in hiding.

Oregon Republican walkout: lawmakers flee to avoid vote on climate change bill - Vox

Oregon politics has been thrown into chaos for more than a week after Republican legislators fled the state and took refuge in neighboring Idaho. As police were ordered to bring them home, rightwing militia groups vowed to defend them, raising the prospect of violent confrontation. Oregon senator walkout: 'patriot' groups vow to protect Republicans who fled state Read more The issue that sparked the disorder in the Pacific Northwest state: climate crisis. The Republican senators were responding to an incremental, market-based, cap-and-trade plan aimed at curbing climate crisis. But, when faced with the climate bill, Republicans pulled their senators out of the state, and denied the Senate a quorum. Earlier in the session, they did the same thing when faced with a bill raising taxes for education, and Democrats broke the deadlock by abandoning bills intended to limit exemptions to vaccination and introduce gun control measures.

How Republicans killed Oregon’s climate crisis bill – by fleeing the state | US news | The Guardian

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It's logical conclusion..

A Tennessee state GOP lawmaker has called for getting rid of the entire higher education system, asserting that such a move would “save America” and cut out "the liberal breeding ground." State Sen. Kerry Roberts made the remarks while speaking on his conservative talk radio show last week. He addressed his problems with the higher education system while discussing a recent legislative hearing focused on abortion legislation.

Tennessee state GOP lawmaker says getting rid of higher education would 'save America' | TheHill

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Tucker Carlson says masks and social distancing "have no basis of any kind in science. It's like a kind of bizarre health theater

Andrew Lawrence on Twitter: "Tucker Carlson says masks and social distancing "have no basis of any kind in science. It's like a kind of bizarre health theater" https://t.co/71lIvRubx8" / Twitter

For example, there was an anti-mask rally in Scottsdale, Arizona, on June 24. There, a local council member, Republican Guy Phillips, shouted George Floyd’s dying words — “I can’t breathe!” — before ripping his own mask off, according to the Washington Post. (Phillips later apologized “to anyone who became offended.”)

Evidence supports the use of masks: Several recent studies found masks reduce transmission. Some experts hypothesize — and early research suggests — that masks played a significant role in containing outbreaks in several Asian countries where their use is widespread, like South Korea and Japan..

Why Arizona’s Covid-19 epidemic became the worst in the US - Vox

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American confidence in science has split heavily along party lines, according to a Gallup poll released Friday.
The survey found that Democrats were very confident in science, with 79 percent saying they have "a great deal" or "quite a lot" of confidence in the field, compared to just 45 percent of Republicans who said the same. Among independents, 65 percent expressed confidence..

Americans' confidence in science split heavily along party lines: Gallup | TheHill