Climate Change Is Real When It Costs Trump Money (Video)


Donald Trump (R-N.Y.) is many things, most of them unsavory, but let it not be said that he is a climate change denier, at least not when his property is at risk.

The outspoken Republican nominee has been adamant, against all scientific logic, that global warming is a hoax. In a typically incomprehensible interview with conservative radio host, Hugh Hewitt back in September, Trump made his position clear. Well, clear for Trump:

“I’m not a believer in global warming. And I’m not a believer in man-made global warming. It could be warming, and it’s going to start to cool at some point. And you know, in the early, in the 1920s, people talked about global cooling.”

This makes POLITICO ‘s revelation that Trump has applied for permission to build a coastal wall at one of his seaside golf resorts all the more interesting. The application for the wall explicitly cites global warming and the increased soil erosion related to it, as chief justification for the necessity of the structure.

These admissions run directly opposite of the claims Trump has long been making on Twitter, regarding his disbelief in climate change:

Once again, Trump demonstrates his willingness to pander to the ignorant, as long as it isn’t costing him anything. As soon as he stands to lose money, global warming becomes real.

The Irish resort, Trump International Golf Links & Hotel, also called Trump Doonbeg, has already lost considerable frontage due to increased storm erosion.

Trump’s previous attempt to win special approval for the structure ultimately failed. This lead to the development of an environmental impact statement, which has been included in the most recent application. The statement explicitly points to global warming as the catalyst for the increase in sea levels, and thus erosion, which threaten the property:

“As with other predictions of global warming and its effects, there is no universal consensus regarding changes in these events. Our advice is to assume that the recent average rate of dune recession will not alter greatly in the next few decades, perhaps as far into the future as 2050 as assumed in the [government study] but that subsequently an increase in this rate is more likely than not.”

Must be nice to write problems off as “bullshit” until they affect your bottom line. Watch an excerpt from Trump’s interview with additional commentary below.

Featured image by Rachel Titiriga via Flickr under a Creative Commons 2.0 license.