Message From the Editor

As President-elect Donald Trump’s Cabinet picks fall into — and out of — place, the mainstream media frequently makes proclamations about which potential nominee is the most extreme, the most dangerous, or in some cases, the most liberal of the lot. But when Trump has shifted the entire playing field so far right, you lose perspective. Even those future appointees who haven’t pleaded on behalf of war criminals could pose serious dangers to a livable climate.

Just take Energy Secretary pick Chris Wright, CEO of fracking services company Liberty Energy.

As Geoff Dembicki writes, “some industry observers hailed the appointment as a sign of political moderation within the Republican cabinet, with the head of the Colorado Oil and Gas Association arguing that Wright is ‘a pragmatic problem solver’ and ‘not a climate denier.’

Yet according to some dyed-in-the-wool climate crisis deniers, Wright is one of their own. Gregory Wrightstone, the head of the nonprofit CO2 Coalition, praised Trump’s choice of the fracking CEO to lead the Energy Department and told DeSmog that when he met Wright in 2022, their views were closely aligned. “The main thing that he and I and the CO2 Coalition agree on is that increasing CO2 is a net benefit, it’s not the demon molecule, it’s the miracle molecule,” Wrightstone told Dembicki. Not a climate denier? Read the full story. [[link removed]]

Join me in congratulating Geoff Dembicki, an award-winning investigative reporter, author, and long-time friend of DeSmog, on his promotion to the position of DeSmog Global Managing Editor [[link removed]]! He’s well-suited to the urgent effort required to expose the fossil fuel industry’s ongoing efforts to block climate action, which the next Trump administration is already preparing for.

As reporter Adam Barnett writes, this will be a trans-Atlantic affair. Trump recently announced the UK ambassador will be major campaign donor and billionaire Warren Stephens. The investment banker runs a firm with investments in several oil and gas companies. Environmental campaigner Tessa Khan told DeSmog the appointment was a sign that “the UK is going to be under pressure from American fossil fuel interests to slow its transition away from oil and gas.” Read more. [[link removed]]

Have a story tip or feedback? Get in touch: [[email protected]]. Want to know what our UK team is up to? Sign up for our UK newsletter [[link removed]].

Thanks,

Brendan DeMelle

Executive Director

P.S. Readers like you power our journalism dedicated to climate accountability. Can you donate $10 or $20 right now to support more of this essential work? [[link removed]]

Image credit: Zach D. Roberts for DeSmog

DeSmog Announces Geoff Dembicki as Global Managing Editor [[link removed]]— By Brendan DeMelle (3 min. read) —

Longtime DeSmog reporter and author of The Petroleum Papers will play a key leadership role as we investigate a global resurgence of climate obstruction.

READ MORE [[link removed]] Group That Calls CO2 ‘Essential’ Praises Trump Energy Secretary Pick Chris Wright [[link removed]]— By Geoff Dembicki (4 min. read) —

The head of the CO2 Coalition tells DeSmog that Wright agrees carbon dioxide is “not the demon molecule, it’s the miracle molecule.”

READ MORE [[link removed]] Oil and Gas Investments of Donald Trump’s New UK Ambassador [[link removed]]— By Adam Barnett (4 min. read) —

Campaigners warn that the UK will face “pressure from American fossil fuel interests” to slow its energy transition.

READ MORE [[link removed]] Anti-Renewable Influencers Parrot Takes from Fictional TV Series ‘Landman’ [[link removed]]— By Mitch Anderson (4 min) —

Right wing YouTuber Tim Pool is the latest to own ‘climate people’ with fake facts spouted by a grizzled TV oilman.

READ MORE [[link removed]] ‘A Valuable And Generous Ally’: How Exxon and Atlas Network Worked to Block Global Climate Action [[link removed]]— By Anne-Sophie Simpère (12 min. read) —

New documents show close coordination between the oil major and a coalition of free-market think tanks at a crucial moment in climate diplomacy.

READ MORE [[link removed]] From the Climate Disinformation Database: CO2 Coalition [[link removed]]

The CO2 Coalition [[link removed]] is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded from the remains of the now-defunct George C. Marshall Institute for the purpose of “educating thought leaders, policy makers, and the public about the important contribution made by carbon dioxide and fossil fuels to our lives and the economy.” Its tag line is “Carbon dioxide, a nutrient vital for life.” The organization has received funding from the Mercer Family Foundation, Koch family foundations, the Sarah Scaife Foundation, and EOG Resources (formerly Enron Oil and Gas). Physicist William Happer, who served on the first Trump administration’s National Security Council and tried unsuccessfully to spur a review of mainstream climate science, serves as CO2 Coalition chair.

Read the full profile [[link removed]] and browse other individuals and organizations in our Climate Disinformation Database [[link removed]], Ad & PR Database [[link removed]], and Koch Network Database [[link removed]].

DeSmog

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