Ross Douthat Embraces Doing Nothing, Avoids Climate Change Evidence

To oppose taking action on global warming, you have to believe that the vast majority of the world's scientists have come together to trick the world into believing the temperature of the earth is rising and to expect catastrophic results. Since Republicans ensured the demise of climate legislation last week, Ross Douthat took up the impossible task of defending Republican inaction on climate change in his New York Times column yesterday with this exact argument: American conservatives don't trust scientists or government.

Douthat's argument is that since conservatives have seen environmental doomsday predictions come and go, they are inclined to see scientific predictions as empty threats wielded to create a "growth-slowing regulatory regime." Despite the success of cap and trade in other countries, and all the arguments about why climate and energy legislation is also about economic stimulus and job-creation, Douthat beats the tired drum that climate legislation is bad for the economy. This brings him to a pretty pathetic conclusion: "Not every danger has a regulatory solution, and sometimes it makes sense to wait, get richer, and then try to muddle through." Despite it's misrepresentations of the facts, this conclusion has a glimmer of honesty for "reasonable" conservatives like Douthat: he just doesn't trust scientists or the government to the point where it's better to "muddle" than take action.

Douthat's defense of conservative inaction is really an explanation of where they are as a party and an ideology, that they are unwilling to face facts or use government to fix problems. As Republicans scramble to find a platform or agenda for the midterm elections, Douthat's piece highlights why, ideologically, any actual plan to address serious problems is unlikely. This agenda, or lack thereof, will require some nice spin for November, and Douthat may have come up with the ideal slogan, "The wisdom of inaction." At least it's a better sell than "muddle."

Pema Levy is a staff writer for Campus Progress.