Freyne Land

Interesting backfield took on the American Enterprise Institute on Tuesday. U.S. Senators Patrick Leahy, John Kerry, Diane Feinstein and Bernie Sanders.

Their target: Chris DeMuth (at left), president of the Exxon-Mobil-connected "think-tank." The four senators wrote Mr. DeMuth to express their  "very serious concerns about news reports" AEI offerted to pay scientists up to $10,000  if they’d publicly question the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s Report released last week.

"We hope that you will respond to this letter by telling us that the news reports that you offered to pay scientists up to $10,000 are incorrect. If not we trust that AEI will publicly apologize for this conduct and demonstrate its sincerity by properly disciplining those responsible. We look forward to hearing from you on this most important matter."

"It's outrageous," said Sen. Sanders in a release, "that a right-wing think tank with ties to Big Oil and the Bush Administration is trying to twist scientific findings for their political purposes on the pressing issue of climate change. The IPCC report confirms the urgency of the problem and adds to the scientific consensus that global warming is happening now and is human-caused. Is there no limit to the lengths that some corporate-funded groups will go to protect their donors' short-term profits? Is the fate of the entire planet not important enough for them to put the common interest above their narrow self-interest?

"The truth is that this scandalous behavior on the part of AEI is just the latest example of how big money interests distort and undermine honest debate on the important issues facing our country in so many areas.”

Jeezum crow. Ol' Bernardo hasn’t changed his tune one note in the 26 years I’ve been covering him.