Climate and Politics
Introduction
Upton Sinclair once said: It is difficult to get a man to understand something, when his salary depends on his not understanding it. Lets see where our elected officials stand on the issue of climate change and, just as important, where they get their campaign contributions. Is there a relationship between our elected officials position on climate change and the amount of money they get from the fossil fuel industry? Correlation is not causation but we may find some interesting results!
Assignment
First, choose a member of the House of Representatives or senator from one of the following energy-producing states: Kentucky, Louisiana, Oklahoma, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, Texas, West Virginia, or Wyoming at https://www.house.gov/representatives or https://www.senate.gov. Then go to the League of Conservation Voters scorecard webpage at http://scorecard.lcv.org. Click on your state and find your elected official. What is their 2019 score? What is their lifetime score? Next, click on their name. Now, select any three climate-change issues (Under Issues). In your own words, briefly describe the bill (click on Vote Name) and how your representative voted. Was it a pro-environment vote? Record your answers.
Now for the fun part!
Visit the Center for Responsive Politics at https://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/. Go to Current members and find your representative or senator. Explore the information you find after clicking the Industries and Contributors tabs. Do you find contributions from the fossil fuel industries? How about utilities like American Electric Power? If so, how much are they getting? Are specific coal, oil, and gas companies mentioned as Top Industries when it comes to 2019-2020 (House) or 2015-2020 (Senate) contributions? You may have to scroll down to find some of this information. Is there a link between how your representative or senator voted on the issues and where they get their money? You tell me! Write a one-page (single-spaced, typed, 12-point, Times New Roman font, one-inch margins on all sides) paper summarizing your findings. Dont forget to proofread your work carefully!
