The Gift That Keeps On Giving: Dana Perino Reveals The Awesome Benefits Of Global Warming

While White House Press Secretary Dana Perino may lack the showstopping musical theatre skills of her doppelganger, Kristin Chenoweth, she nevertheless provides us with almost daily entertainment. She's also recently remarked that parody and criticism of her efforts don't bother her in the least. When asked if ribbing of the sort she's been receiving from Doonesbury this week "gets under her skin," she brushed it off: "I hardly have time to check it out." Bully for her! She won't mind, then, if we put her under the microscope. Please join us on these pages for "The Gift That Keeps on Giving," and if something at the gaggle makes you gag, feel free to share your thoughts.

While the California wildfires and the upcoming Iraq supplemental bill dominated the early part of yesterday's presser, the conversation eventually turned to the testimony of CDC director Dr. Julie Gerberding, whose testimony on the public health impact of climate change was alleged to have been "heavily edited" by the Washington Post (well, the Post says "heavily edited," anyway--their source says "eviscerated").

When directly questioned on the deletions (which included Gerberding's blanket conclusion, "CDC considers climate change a serious public health concern"), Perino launched into a four paragraph dodge in which she claimed to not have seen the edits, touted the administrations "open book" policy on climate change, and orated a lengthy filibuster in praise of the CDC. Near the end of these remarks, however, Perino took a flying leap into the eternal sunshine, saying: "And so the decision on behalf of CDC was to focus that testimony on public health benefits -- there are public health benefits to climate change, as well, but both benefits and concerns that somebody like a Dr. Gerberding, who is the expert in the field, could address."

Public health benefits? Yea, verily, this was a theme Perino tried to advance, in spite of the fact that she was simultaneously attempting to tout the President's concern over the issue:

Anybody who wants to look at what the President thinks about climate change looks -- needs to only look back three weeks ago to when he gave a major address on climate change when he invited all 15 of the major economies of this world to come together to work on a solution -- work on a path to get to a solution to help the growth of greenhouse gas emissions.

Still, you have to be intrigued at the prospect of possible health benefits from global warming. As Steve Benen of the Carpetbagger Report blueskies, "Less hypothermia? Fewer instances of frostbite? A steep decline in the number of snowball-fight-related injuries?"

Lest you think that Perino had blinded the White House Press Corps with pseudo-science, someone did eventually question her assertion. Perino's response:

...this is an issue where I'm sure lots of people would love to ridicule me when I say this, but it is true that many people die from cold-related deaths every winter. And there are studies that say that climate change in certain areas of the world would help those individuals. There are also concerns that it would increase tropical diseases and that's -- again, I'm not an expert in that, I'm going to let Julie Gerberding testify in regards to that...

Uhm...but they didn't let Gerberding testify to that, did they?

Comments

[sos]

thos, you keep asking what the "correct" climate for the earth is, as if you think that that is some way to prove the wrongness of the (scientifically undisputed) theory of global warming. you are clearly quite clever, however, if you stop to think about it that is a completely irrelevant question. the earth WILL self-correct, as it always has. the questions you SHOULD be asking is, "at what point during this upward warming trend is enough damage done to make it ireversable?", "what is the correct climate for LIFE on earth?", "and where to the two trendlines intersect?".

sure, the earth will be fine. your progeny may not fare quite as well.

[thos]

Thank you for replying with an honest answer as opposed to the usual inability of the posters to mount any meaningful response.

Regarding your post: It is incorrect to say that the evidence is undisputed. I dispute it. Even some of the scientists that won the Nobel Prize w/Gore dispute it. Not that it is getting warmer; it is.

So, I'll ask your question: At what point during this upward warming trend is enough damage done to make it irreversable?

And, another one: If the earth is self-correcting then do we pose greater risk to earth by trying to usurp her self-correcting efforts?

I'm not trying to be slick. I really want meaningful debate. It it all too rare on this and most websites.

[getoffthecross]

Anyone who thinks that humans are incapable of effecting the natural order of the planet is by definition incapable of meaningful debate.

This goes beyond the cars we drive. It's the roads we pave, the chemicals we release, the air conditionings, refrigerators, batteries, plastic bags (and diapers), the sheer volume of farm animals we propugate to sustain 6 billion persons...­nature was never intended to be our dumping ground. If a person can't get their heads around that, then debate is hardly going to make a difference.

[sos]

well, i think the answer is that it is, ultimately, always reversable. we just probably won't be around to enjoy the benefits. and yes, we may pose a greater risk to usurp her self-correcting efforts, maybe. but the fact is, we've already influenced the flow of events with our actions that have or will lead to the need for correction, so - what to do? i think, ultimately this is - sadly - one of those things that will only be unequivocally answered after everything has played out. oh well, at least i won't be around to suffer the consequences i guess.

[SupremeIdiot]

A horse is a horse, of course, of course.
And no one can talk to a horse of course.
That is, of course, unless that horse
is the famous Dana Perino.

[ROBOT8]

HOT CHICKS SELL FAKE NEWS.THEIR SO CUTE! LIKE JAPANEESE OFFICE FLOWERS...­....SO CUTE AND HARMLESS..­....REAL OFFICE DECORUM!!!!!!! SO PRETTY! AND THEY DO WHAT THEY'RE TOLD! JUST LIKE DOGS!!! PRETTY DUMB DOGS
"If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it. The lie can be maintained only for such time as the State can shield the people from the political, economic and/or military consequences of the lie. It thus becomes vitally important for the State to use all of its powers to repress dissent, for the truth is the mortal enemy of the lie, and thus by extension, THE TRUTH IS THE GREATEST ENEMY OF THE STATE." -- Joseph Goebbels, German Minister of Propaganda, 1933-1945
"The mind of a bigot is like the pupil of an eye: the more light you pour on it, the more it contracts.­"
Chief Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, U.S. Supreme Court
"When facism comes to America it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying a cross.” -Sinclair Lewis

[joebaggadonuts]

It was Justice Holmes' FATHER, the poet, Olive Wendell Holmes who said that. Please stop mis-attributing that quote.

[sinnerjizm]

Could this be Bush's cigar-girl?

[Kundera]

it's time for school little boy.
mommy has your lunch ready.

[LiberalRebel2]

"Dana Perino is a paid for Bush whore"

THAT was a fine one. it will be my new bumper sticker from now on. Loved it. thanks man!

[starrianna]

I think this is a way better bumper sticker:

Dana Perino's face, and the line:

**********­**********­**********­**********­*****
TELL THAT TO THE POLAR BEARS, BITCH!
**********­**********­**********­**********­*****

It's my line, but you can all use it for free.

[kfs]

She looks hypnotized to me. Or in a drugged state, perhaps after having drunk this Administration's Kool-Aid. Even Tony Snow didn't believe half of the stuff he peddled everyday and it took its toll on him. I believe Ms. Perino believes everything she says.

[truthyguy]

At first I thought she was just nervous being press secretary and speaking in public.
Then I thought she can't be that stupid, she is just doing the bidding of Bush, albeit in an inarticulate way.

The I realized I was correct on both counts.
She has that combination of being totally inept at her job and she has the brains of a rock. Which makes her perfectly suited to represent Bush who is exactly the same.

[bluesnot]

Yep.

[freehuey]

Man, havent you heard?

The only thing you have to do to get a job at the White House is lie, and you don't haev to do that particularly well.

[Witchitalineman]

Another idiot.

[BachelorJohnnyCool]

It's been obvious for a long time that those "big girl panties" that Secretary of Education Spellings told her to put on are too tight and cutting off the circulation to her brain.

[thos]

While the scientific community is divided over many aspects of the global warming theory, the effect of global warming on precipitation levels is not one of them: Global warming would mean more condensation and more evaporation, producing more and/or heavier rains. Global warming, therefore, could offer the answer to the water scarcity problem that the Worldwatch Institute has been seeking.
If history is any indication, greater precipitation may be only one of many benefits of global warming. For example, between the 10th and 12th Centuries, when the temperature of the planet was roughly 0.5 degrees Celsius warmer than it is today, agriculture in North America and Europe flourished and the southern regions of Greenland were free of ice, allowing cultivation by Norse settlers. Evidence of this was found in 1993 when scientists from the National Science Foundation­-sponsored Greenland Ice Sheet Project II extracted an ice core from Greenland's ice sheet that spanned more than 100,000 years of climate history. Samplings from the core suggest that a Little Ice Age began between 1400 and 1420, blanketing the Vikings' farms in ice and forcing them to abandon their farms in search of more hospitable climates. Prior to the onset of this Little Ice Age, temperatures were comparable to the temperatures general circulation models used by the U.N.-spons­ored Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) have projected for 2030-2050. Yet, the world's leaders stand poised to take dramatic steps to curb the risks of this kind of climate change.
Global warming could also mean greater agricultural productivity and greater water conservation. CO2 acts as a fertilizer on plant life while reducing plant transpiration (the passage of water from the roots through the plant's vascular system to the atmosphere). Thus, with global warming, agricultural output could be expected to increase while making less demands on the water supply.
David Ridenour, "Cure to Global Warming Could Be Worse Than the Disease," National Policy Analysis #165, The National Center for Public Policy Research, February 2001, available on the Internet at http://www.nationalcenter.org/NPA165.html.

[drumz]

If you for one minute think that anything out of The National Center for Public Policy Research is unbiased or truthful you are showing your true colors; troll.

[thos]

We are all biased. But, please point out the part(s) of that post that show a bias.

Troll

p.s. What is the correct climate for earth?

[NuovoBlu]

Firstly, you reference an article which was written back in 2001. Perhaps more recent studies or "opinions" would be more valid as there has been much research since 2001.

Secondly, to suggest that this could be the answer to water scarcity is like saying if you buy a lotto ticket you have a great chance of winning.

Will the rain fall in catchment areas? Will it fall in areas that currently are arid? Will the change in climate necessarily mean a greater surface area of agricultural land? Or will it mean a shift in areas where agriculture will become possible?

[thos]

You pose interesting questions. Thank you.
What happened during the "Little Ice Age" has not changed in the past six years.
Regarding rain fall catchment areas and where the rain will fall? Those are the same exact questions scientists and farmers have been asking themselves since humans have walked the earth.

[joebaggadonuts]

Those fires in Sol Cal sure represent the increased rainfall you mention, eh? Or that drought in GA? Oh, those are regional anomalies? Can you name any actual regions where this presumption of benefit has actually been conferred?

[thos]

In the early 1930's there was a drought that covered Oklahoma, Kansas, Texas and Colorado that makes what's happening in Georgia today pale in comparision. What was that all about?

Regarding the benefits of global warming? We'll see won't we. I'm certainly not an expert.

Since you apparently are please explain the benefits of global cooling? When I was a boy that was the big concern.

[johnnyjust]

It got Al Gore an Oscar and Nobel Peace(?) prize.

Other than that, pretty useless.

[drumz]

Only to pea-brained repukes like you

[LiberalRebel2]

No no no...it is not pretty useless, but for you and your burning Nation and drowning Nation and..well the list goes on for all those Natural disasters hitting your country the US of whatever A. But then again. That Nation is less and less useful nowadays so..pretty useless other then for their own implosion right? ROFLMAO!

[freehuey]

Like all you tired Klansmen.

[ForeverBlunt]

What benefits Ms. Draino? Did this RePIGnican administration devolve to such depths that the only people they hire are those that are the least qualified to do the job for which they were hired? Apparently so, as evidenced by this stupid bitch. Public health benefits? Of all the ridiculously bizarre things to say! That's even worse than Arid Fleisher's comment about being careful about criticizing this inept government. Granted his gaffe was of a more severe nature, but Ms. Draino's gaffe was pure idiocy. God bless America- what's left of it.

[thos]

What is the correct climate for earth?

p.s. you should do a "spellcheck" before you post. You've got several misspellings.

[rwe]

in moonbatnation the correct climate would never be what it is during Pres Bush' administration and would always be what is current during any Dem administration .. And the way it is going the dems are sure trying to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory once again

[CeeCee]

..."there are public health benefits to climate change..."

Whaaaa???

Oh, please, please, do tell! I can't wait to get healthier as the planet caves in on itself.

[thos]

What is the correct climate for earth?

[drumz]

Go ask Rush, he'll tell you and then you can believe that too!

[kurttrail]

A temperature that is not affected by human-made greenhouse gasses.

[LiberalRebel2]

That question does only one thing, it shows how ignorant you are. ROFLMAO!

[CyrusBeaucephus]

Less people will throw their backs out shovelling snow. Less people will slip on ice. Of course entire species will go extinct and there will be famines and floods and shit but let's focus on the positive side. In related news several million people did not die horrible brutal needless deaths in Iraq today as a direct result of the illegal US invasion/Oil seizure. Tomorrow? who can say? In related news, millions of moonshine-swilling fat assed yellow bellied southern christian chickenhawks chose to not enlist in the War to Take Over Iraq until its oil is gone. Can we say we are suprised?

[skyreader7]

I guess cancer has its benefit too. Like you don't have to go to work right before you die.

[shaggles]

Dana makes Tony Snow sound like the voice of reason.