After the network showed a clip of a young conservative activist saying that climate change was the number one issue for young voters, Fox News moderator Martha MacCallum asked for a show of hands in response to her question, “Do you believe human behavior is causing climate change?”
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis refused to participate, and then GOP presidential hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy declared, “I’m the only person on the stage who isn’t bought and paid for, so I can say this: The climate change agenda is a hoax.” A crowd full of Republicans started to boo.
Most of the Republicans on stage fell short of completely denying that climate change is caused by human activity. Ramaswamy, perhaps taking a page out of the Trump playbook of making the most outlandish comment possible, came right out and said it.
Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie shot back, “I’ve had enough already tonight of a guy who sounds like ChatGPT.” Former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley went so far as to venture, “Climate change is real.”
But moderator Bret Baier seized not on Ramaswamy’s blatant denial of the scientific consensus on climate change, but on his claim that he was the only candidate on the stage who was “not bought and paid for.” Baier took turns asking candidates, “Are you bought and paid for?” In classic Fox News fashion, a moment that could have provided insight into how far Republicans are willing to go to please young voters concerned about the environment devolved into senseless crosstalk. Still, for a party that has spent years ignoring or denying the biggest threat to our planet’s future, tonight’s responses were actually, almost, a little bit refreshing.
They have endless amounts of bigotry, and that is all that matters to their voters. They know they don't need a platform and Trump made them realise that they don't even need to pretend to have a platform anymore.
Many Republicans actually believe a lot of stuff that’s true. They just tend to have One Big Issue that only the Republican candidate will support, usually something bigotry related, but for a few it’s HCGW related.
Edit: Actually, I was just looking into it, I think this claim is unsupported. Looks like climate change will cause a 5-25% less than what it would have been, but that's as compared to the projected growth of yields due to improved technology and resources. So the picture is a little more muddy but still impactful.
Climate change isn't really something you can deny anymore if you work in ag, and a lot of small-town conservatives have a close relationship to farming (not trying to stereotype, just speaking to my experience in Iowa). Yields have been declining basically every year for the last 10 or so, with wind, drought, and flooding being the top reasons. Temps in the central US reached the highest since the great depression and the dust bowl. For those people, denying the existence of climate change is basically saying you'll do nothing to help farmers suffering from decreasing yields. It's not a harmless "anti-woke" opinion anymore, it's actively harmful to the material conditions of a lot of republicans.
That's not to say it isn't really interesting watching them dance around it. They'll probably try to say, "yea, it's real, but there's no point in cutting back fossil fuels at this point. Here's more farming subsidies to help with your decreasing yields", and i'm betting that it will still be very effective for their base.-
Vivek saying "I'm the only one here not bought and paid for" just sounds like projection to me, along with a bit of "no true Scotsman" fallacy thrown in for flavoring.
Also dude literally started an "anti-woke" company just to Join in on the anti-woke grift.
As a non American, viewing this from the outside. Let me say this.
These guys are ridiculous please don't vote for them. Not only do they not believe in climate change, which is insane given how much of the planet is currently ablaze, but they don't even understand what chat GPT is. So they are corrupt and stupid.
It's less that he's bought and more that he's hoping to be bought. He's seeking donations from other people with a vested interest in denying human made climate change. He's not bought, he's for sale.
These folk are the biggest cringelords who ever walked the Earth. An international embarrassment that any of these people are taken seriously enough to ever get within arms reach of holding public office.
I love it when people with hundreds of millions act like they can't be bought. Like no shit, you don't have to be bought, you're already on the sides of the buyers
In my own stupid opinion, the GOP is infested by fascist thought to its very core. And yet, they got boo'd for denying climate change. Some change is good, and some change is bad, and I think the conservatives recognizing climate change is a damn good thing.
But it should have happened 20 years ago. We are seriously fucked now. Thanks Mitch.
The thing is, fascism is a populist ideology. It works best when you can point at someone and say "this thing that concerns you is insert boogeyman's fault!"
I'm ultimately not as concerned by these hacks as the guy who comes along and actually appeals to someone besides the boomers.
I think we have to rapidly come to terms with the fact that, politically, we are never going to adequately address climate change before it is too late. Conservatives will dig in their heels and slow the process to a near-standstill, and liberal democratic institutions will allow it to happen.
Climate change will be addressed by either a deus-ex-machina-like technological breakthrough, or by means outside of electoral politics.
Climate change will be addressed by either a deus-ex-machina-like technological breakthrough, or by means outside of electoral politics.
And we can rule out the technological breakthrough. It's unlikely, although not impossible, to happen, BUT it's absolutely impossible to be implented on a large enough scale to make change.
The same people who don't want wind turbines or solar farms within eye sight of their backyard are suddenly to accept something completely new and not well understood or tested... on an unprecedented scale? Sign me up for a laugh.
edit: All those bastards advocating some world saving technology, just so they don't need to change something now, ignore the fact that it'll also be them who will prevent that technology - if it comes. NIMBYs stay NIMBYs.
Remember what happened when we got that miraculously effective covid vaccine? The unwillingness of people to take that simple, free action to help return to the normal they wanted back so badly really killed my hope for an end to climate change.
Forget technology. Even scientists' and engineers' wettest dreams don't consider technologies that capture even a tenth of the billions of tons of CO2 we release on a yearly basis.
If you look closely at the numbers it's hard to understand that we engineer ourselves out of this mess.
Solar, wind etc. is all nice. Nuclear fisson, cold and hot fusion, okay. We're far away of anything useful. Capital is just in the wrong hands.
Trust me, I realise... I mention a technological breakthrough not because I think it's likely or a good idea to expect, it's not and it isn't. It's a terribly stupid "solution" to bet on.
But no actual, plausible solution will actually be allowed. At least not until tremendous damage has already been done.
Sadly in my opinion it is already too late. In my opinion we are already in the downward spiral. It’s like a roller coaster ride, once you are over that hump just hang on for the ride.
At this point we and our great great great great great great…. Grand children will pay the price.
We had the chance to fix it. It’s already way too late. Sorry just my opinion. Less pollution might make the fall out slightly less bad. So there is a point in stopping pollution, but as for reversing and stopping what’s going to happen? Yeah no sorry we are screwed.
They don't believe in anything. They're vapid narcissists grabbing at power. They will say and do anything for power and approval, that's what makes them so dangerous. It wasn't a debate up there, they weren't debating anything, it was a popularity contest and each and every one of them danced for the crowd in their own way
Still, for a party that has spent years ignoring or denying the biggest threat to our planet’s future, tonight’s responses were actually, almost, a little bit refreshing.
setting the bar so low that any response besides outright hostility as refreshing, is not refreshing.
Wow. It is hard to believe, but they are all as dumb as Trump. Couldn't they have placed just one candidate with an IQ over 90? I mean, just for a change?
As I said again and again, trump is simply following the fascist playbook. You have to at least grant it to him, it is virtually the only thing he's good at. Do you know which other very popular democratically elected leader skipped presidential debates a few years ago? It's the guy waging war to Ukraine.