Jeb Bush Says He Would Have Probably Skipped Climate Conference

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Jeb Bush with David Greene, a World War II veteran, at a campaign stop Tuesday at the Sullivan Brothers Iowa Veterans Museum in Waterloo.Credit Matthew Putney/The Waterloo Courier, via Associated Press

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WATERLOO, Iowa — Jeb Bush on Tuesday belittled President Obama’s trip to Paris for the global climate conference, saying that if he were president, he most likely would have skipped the meeting, where officials from nearly 200 nations are seeking to avert potentially catastrophic damage to the environment.

Describing Mr. Obama’s remarks at a news conference in France, Mr. Bush said, “He basically says, ‘Look, the discussion is over, anyone who disagrees with my nuanced, sophisticated views is an idiot.”’

“I just disagree with that,” Mr. Bush added.

His remarks came at a town-hall-style event where Mr. Bush was asked by an audience member, “Is climate change a scam that’s foisted on us by the scientific community?’’

Mr. Bush said it was not in dispute that the earth’s climate was changing, but he added that the climate had “been changing forever,” and that the impact and role of human behavior in those changes were in dispute.

He opposed any measures that would “destroy” the economy, he explained, including the president’s Clean Power Plan to reduce carbon emissions from coal plants.

Government’s role should be to help communities adapt, Mr. Bush said. “Obama said today the streets of Miami are flooded and fish are falling on them,’’ Mr. Bush said. “I live there. I don’t know what he’s talking about.’’

Asked by reporters if he would have participated in the global meeting to limit greenhouse gases, Mr. Bush said, “I’m not sure I would have gone to the climate summit if I was president today.’’

“These proposals could have an impact on the here and now, on people that are really struggling right now,’’ he added. “So I’d be uncertain whether I would attend a meeting like that where it seems the movement is toward policies that will hurt our economy.’’

Mr. Bush’s comments dovetailed with remarks earlier in the day by Chris Christie, the New Jersey governor.

“The climate has been changing forever, and it will always change and man will always contribute to it,” Mr. Christie said on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.” It’s not a crisis.”

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