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In Irma's Wake, Florida Governor Still Won't Acknowledge Climate Change

Gov. Rick Scott is again weathering criticism over global warming in the wake of Hurricane Irma, and won't say if he believes man-made climate change is real.

Gov. Rick Scott is again weathering criticism over global warming in the wake of Hurricane Irma, and won't say if he believes man-made climate change is real.

“Clearly our environment changes all the time, and whether that’s cycles we’re going through or whether that’s man-made, I wouldn’t be able to tell you which one it is,” Scott said after twice touring the storm-ravaged Florida Keys this week. “But I can tell you this: We ought to go solve problems. I know we have beach renourishment issues. I know we have flood-mitigation issues.”

In not taking a position on climate change, Scott’s views and responses to questions about climate change have remained markedly steady for years. The only major difference, for instance, between his comments Wednesday evening to reporters and his statements before his 2014 reelection is that he no longer says, “I’m not a scientist.”

Before that, in his first election in 2010, Scott clearly denied the idea of anthropogenic global warming.

“I've not been convinced that there's any man-made climate change,” Scott said then. “Nothing's convinced me that there is.”

Caroline Cournoyer is GOVERNING's senior web editor.
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