You’d be forgiven for believing that American voters don’t care about climate change. After all, studies have suggested that reducing carbon emissions ranks at the bottom of the public’s priorities: who has time to deal with a future catastrophe when the Pentagon needs planes, ASAP?
Politicians have taken this perceived voter apathy to heart. Candidate Obama’s promises to help the planet heal have been superseded by President Obama’s energy strategy, best described as “drill everywhere.” For his part, Mitt Romney has been as craven and back and forthi on climate change as he’s been on every other issue. Democrats believe that ignoring climate change won’t hurt them at the booth. Republicans believe that ignoring climate change –– indeed, refuting its existence –– will gain them votes (or, even better, donations from the Koch brothers).
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As it turns out, though, both parties are wrong: this election season, promising to combat climate change is far more likely to boost a candidate’s chances than harm them. That’s the surprising conclusion of a new study from the Yale Project on Climate Change Communication (YPCCC) and George Mason University, which found that a solid majority (55%) of voters say they’ll consider a candidate’s position on global warming when they pull the lever this November.
And before you protest that this 55% includes deniers who are voting for Romney and Paul Ryan because they don’t endorse climate action, know this: according to the study, “climate change issue voters” who think that global warming is happening outnumber deniers 10 to 1. In other words, the people who care about a politician’s stance on climate change are the same ones who acknowledge climate change’s veracity.
Click source to read FULL report from Ben Goldfarb
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