A questionnaire from Trump's transition team was sent to the Energy Department asking for the names of the employees working on climate control issues and it caused a stir among Democrats.
Trump's transition team tried to downplay the inquiry saying:
The questionnaire was not authorized or part of our standard protocol. The person who sent it has been properly counseled.
Massachusetts Senator Ed Markey told CNN on Wednesday:
Any employee of the Department of Energy that has been working on climate science over the last 8 years is actually doing their job. It would be irresponsible not to deal with the issue and now what we're seeing is an inquiry by the Trump transition team that goes right to the heart of the integrity of the science.
According to CNN, top Democratic lawmakers on the Oversight and Energy and Commerce committees sent a letter to Vice President-elect Mike Pence expressing their concerns.
The letter said:
While the new Administration is entitled to select political appointees who share the President-Elect's views on climate change, any effort to retaliate against, undermine, demote, or marginalize civil servants on the basis of their scientific analysis would be an abuse of authority.
Trump has said in the past:
Nobody really knows (if climate change is real).
He added:
I'm still open-minded. Nobody really knows. Look, I'm somebody that gets it, and nobody really knows. It's not something that's so hard and fast.
