Associated Press Dismisses Perry’s Global Warming Thoughts as Unscientific

Republican presidential candidate Rick Perry said Wednesday he has major doubts about the human contribution to global warming. And that didn't sit well with the Associated Press.

"I think we’re seeing it almost weekly or even daily, scientists who are coming forward and questioning the original idea that man-made global warming is what is causing the climate to change," Perry said at a campaign event in New Hampshire. "Yes, our climates change. They’ve been changing ever since the earth was formed.”

The Texas governor added that the "global cost" of addressing the issue could cost billions or even trillions in taxpayer dollars, and said: "I don't think from my perspective that I want to be engaged in spending that much money on still a scientific theory that has not been proven and from my perspective is more and more being put into question."

But while Perry's comments are newsworthy in themselves, check out the context in which the Associated Press reported them, with these two paragraphs tucked halfway into its article:

But Perry's opinion runs counter to the view held by an overwhelming majority of scientists that pollution released from the burning of fossil fuels is heating up the planet. Perry's home state of Texas releases more heat-trapping pollution carbon dioxide -- the chief greenhouse gas -- than any other state in the country, according to government data.

Global warming has become an issue for contenders for the Republican nomination to run away from, since many conservatives question overwhelming evidence showing climate change is happening and the big government solutions to stem it.

Never mind the fact that one of the leading scientists behind the current global warming movement is being investigated for "scientific misconduct", or that a new study of NASA data found that the Earth is actually releasing more heat into outer space and thus is not as warm as predicted, or the whacky stories like this one that say cats are the culprits of climate change.

Also never mind this story from last week that said humans have actually helped curb increases in methane gas, or videos like this that outline the purported causes of global warming and debunk them one by one.

No, by slipping in impressive-sounding generalizations like "an overwhelming majority of scientists" and implying that it's only conservatives who dare question the "overwhelming evidence," the Associated Press has done an impressive little sleight of hand with Perry's statement.

Oh, and this isn't the first time the AP has gone a little global warming trigger-happy. Last month's heatwave brought us this gem of an alarmist headline: "Northeast braces for temps near boiling point."