Trump Spun His Climate Denial To N.Y. Times; Lots Of Media Fell For It

"When I first saw New York Times reporters tweet the news that Donald Trump claimed in an interview to have an “open mind” about climate change and the Paris climate agreement, I thought, Who cares? He is packing his administration with fossil fuel promoters, so his latest comments just suggest that he’s camouflaging his climate denial with doublespeak and pandering.

Then I read the full transcript published Wednesday and was horrified by how these comments had been wildly misinterpreted by so many media outlets and commentators. A CNN subhead: “A new view on climate change?” An Associated Press lead sentence: “President-elect Donald Trump changed his tune on several topics — among them climate change and prosecuting Hillary Clinton — in statements Tuesday to The New York Times and on Twitter.”

They’re wrong. If you look at what he actually said in context, it’s clear that Trump hasn’t changed his mind on anything."

Rebecca Leber reports for Grist November 23, 2016.

SEE ALSO:

"Trump's New Paris Comments Confound Greens" (The Hill)

Op-Ed: "At Lunch, Donald Trump Gives Critics Hope" (New York Times: Thomas L. Friedman)

"Cautious Reactions to Donald Trump’s ‘Open Mind’ Climate Comments" (Wall Street Journal)

"Donald Trump’s New York Times Interview: Full Transcript" (New York Times)

"Did Trump Just Change His Mind on Climate Change?" (Climate Nexus)