This is the fifth article in a continuing series by the NRDC Action Fund on the environmental stances of candidates in key races around the country.  

Missouri’s 4th Congressional District occupies central-west Missouri including Jefferson City, the state capital. This rural district is home to two major military bases, Fort Leonard Wood and Whiteman Air Force Base, and to the birthplace of President Harry Truman. A predominately Republican area, since 1977 the district has been represented in the House by self-described “Harry Truman Democrat” Ike Skelton. (As chair of the Armed Services Committee, Skelton supports expansive, assertive foreign and defense policies, reminiscent of Truman’s Cold War leadership). Skelton has not faced a serious challenge since 1982. This November, former Missouri State Representative Vicky Hartzler will try to buck that trend.

As a former high school teacher, Hartzler ought to recognize the overwhelming scientific evidence behind climate change. But remarkably, she actually thinks global warming is a “hoax,” and a joking matter. She often advertises her scientific know-nothingism on Twitter; in one tweet she sarcastically discusses “another beautiful global warming day,” and in another she makes light of the devastating Icelandic volcano, asking if the volcano “know[s] it is contributing to global warming.” (By the way, the particles released by volcanoes actually temporarily cool the Earth when they go high enough by scattering sunlight.) And Hartzler’s global warming tweets aren’t just wrong on the science, they’re also wrong on the solution. She claims that cap and trade will “kill our jobs,” but research by the University of Illinois, Yale University and the University of California shows that a strong climate bill can create 1.9 million jobs nationally, 29,000 in Missouri alone.

During his long Congressional career, Rep. Skelton has had a mixed record on environmental issues with LCV scores ranging from 41% to 93%, but on the critical issue of clean energy and climate he cast the right vote. He supported the historic American Clean Energy and Security Act (ACES), the first climate bill ever to pass a chamber of Congress. During the House debate on ACES, Skelton said, “Energy reform is not just a matter of wanting to keep our air and planet clean, as worthy and as important as those goals are. It is also a matter of national security. In recent years, the Pentagon has taken a hard look at how climate change could have impact on global security and stability. There are real national and global security implications when lakes go dry or when oceans rise. As Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, this aspect of climate change worries me a great deal.”

Skelton’s record on climate is not all positive, however. Skelton is pushing legislation “that would prohibit the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from regulating greenhouse gas emissions under the authority of the Clean Air Act.” He argues that the EPA is overstepping the law by taking steps to limit carbon pollution from cars, trucks and large power plants and factories. In truth, the EPA is following through on a 2007 Supreme Court ruling that carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases are covered unambiguously under the Clean Air Act. As the law prescribes, the EPA is making science-based determinations on how to best protect our public health and welfare. Skelton’s bill would get in their way. If Congress doesn’t pass new climate legislation – like ACES – then EPA action will be the only tool to start addressing the problem.

The NRDC Action Fund believes that it is important for the public in general, and the voters of specific Congressional districts, be aware of this information as they weigh their choices for November.