Edwards blows tax bucks on looking ignorant

It seems that to show the world what a climate alarmist/ignoramus its governor is Louisianans spent $42,000 in taxpayer funds.

A review of public records reveals that the trip that Democrat Gov. John Bel Edwards took last fall to the United Nations’ Climate Change Conference in Glasgow cost nearly $19,000 for his personal entourage over a nearly two week span, with over $23,000 used to divert Louisiana State Police forces to provide protection.

It turns out he spent the most high-profile part of this time sounding like an idiot. After the panel on which he participated sponsored by the climate alarmist and very leftist Environmental Defense Fund he had the group interview him. In it, he cited climate alarmism canards, such as rising seas and more frequent and severe weather events, that he attributed to climate change and this came about to a significant degree because of man’s activities.

Yet the data show none of this is true. In fact, data indicate flooding is not intensifying and becoming more frequent, nor are hurricanes, tornadic activity and intensity have declined, and wildfires and droughts are less frequent and severe than was the case throughout the first half of the 20th century, a period of far less GHG emission and concentration. And, in reality, ocean tide gauge data shows that the sea level trend has not changed in over 100 years, and show no signs of drastic acceleration, with their tiny annual changes having started well before human carbon dioxide emissions were significant and with the trend unchanged since 1856.  All of the perceived acceleration comes from satellite measurements and could be within the range of measurement error.

Asked about what he would get out of the conference, he said he garnered an invitation because he, joining other foolish Democrats serving as state chief executives part of an organization called the U.S. Climate Alliance, was trying to rope his state into doing something about climate change. He alleged “we are serious” in Louisiana about trying to do this, and for his part he put his money where his mouth was by staging on a year-and-a-half fingernails-across-the-chalkboard exercise with something called the Climate Initiatives Task Force, culminating in production of a propaganda piece based upon the assumptions behind catastrophic anthropogenic global warming.

This report belied that the most consequential actions identified in it require legislative and Public Service Commission buy-in, and whose majorities are far too informed and far less enthralled in ideology to get taken in by this – not to mention the ruinous expense attached to this makes much of it an absolute nonstarter. Of course, in the interview Edwards mentioned none of that or that most of what would was proposed would end up, justifiably so, on the policy scrap heap.

And the transition he seeks is to nowhere. Edwards also claimed to some extent that the state’s hand was being forced, in that the world allegedly was turning away from the use of fossil fuels. Once again, the data show the opposite. Although the portion of total energy used by fossil fuels will decline, just before the conference the U.S. Energy Information Administration – echoing other multinational agencies – reported the absolute total would continue to rise and oil and gas would remain the single largest source of energy into 2050. Note that is the year the Chicken Littles like Edwards cheep net zero carbon emissions must occur or we’re all doomed.

Perhaps it’s too much to hope for, but maybe Edwards spent his time far more productively by attending the Climate Reality Forum, sponsored by the Heartland Institute, on site. There, real science that disputed many of his core beliefs was discussed, and revealed the absolute bankruptcy of his faith.

But surely he didn’t and thereby absolutely wasted the people’s money. And, in the process of course, burned a lot of jet fuel and gasoline getting there and getting around there. As well as joined in with all the hot air he spewed that would do more than anything to fulfill his CAGW fantasy.