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President Trump Calls Climate Change’s Threats to Public Health a “Scam”

Action Date: 02/13/2026

Explanation: Bias and Misrepresentation
Scientists Affected: Climate, Public Health
Agency(s):
Federal → White House
Presidential Administration: Trump Administration (Second)

On February 12, 2026, following the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) repeal of the landmark 2009 Endangerment Finding that greenhouse gases negatively impact public health, President Trump falsely claimed that “[climate change] has nothing to do with public health. This is all a scam, a giant scam.”

Contrary to President Trump’s statement, a significant body of scientific literature has demonstrated that climate change endangers human health. Since the Endangerment Finding established that greenhouse gases adversely affect public health, more than 29,000 peer-reviewed studies have examined the intersection of climate and health, confirming EPA’s 2008 finding. According to Dr. Howard Frumkin, a former director of the National Center for Environmental Health, “[s]tudy after study documents that climate change endangers health, for one simple reason: It’s true.”

Updates:

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© 2026 · Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

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