In 2007, Florida House Speaker Marco Rubio (R) opened the legislative session by saying that climate change and clean energy were top priorities for the state, Climate Desk reported.
“Global warming, dependence on foreign sources of fuel, and capitalism have come together to create opportunities for us that were unimaginable a few short years ago,” said Rubio, adding that greenhouse gas emissions were unavoidable and that Florida should become “an international model of energy efficiency and independence.”
Fast forward to 2013, and US Sen. Marco Rubio had changed his views to more reflect those of the Republican party. During this response to President Obama’s State of the Union address, Rubio said the US should focus on opening federal land for coal, oil, and natural gas exploration “instead of wasting more money on so-called clean-energy companies…”
Last May, Rubio even told ABC News that he doesn’t believe “human activity is causing these dramatic changes to our climate the way these scientists are portraying it.”
Now that he’s officially running for president, Rubio’s stance on climate change will likely only go farther towards the GOP line. Hopefully the video from the Florida House will come up during the campaign, and he will have to admit what he truly believes — not just what he thinks his billionaire donors want to hear.
Watch video of Rubio’s devolution on climate change.
