CNN's Jake Tapper asked about climate change and extreme weather in first question at Florida gubernatorial debate
Tapper: “Given the threats Florida faces from intense hurricanes and rising sea levels, don't Florida voters deserve to know where you stand on this issue?”
Published
As moderator of the October 21 Florida gubernatorial debate, CNN's Jake Tapper asked about climate change in his very first question of the night. Three days earlier, Public Citizen had called on Tapper to ask about climate change, citing Media Matters research about the dearth of climate questions in debates this year, and Tapper responded with a tweet indicating he knows climate change is important and had asked about it in previous debates.
At the Florida debate, Tapper noted that the state is still recovering from the devastation of Hurricane Michael, and pointed out that there's a scientific consensus that warmer waters are making such hurricanes stronger. Tapper then asked the Republican candidate, Rep. Ron DeSantis, to clarify his stance on climate change, given that DeSantis had previously said he's not a climate change denier but also said he doesn't want to be called a climate change believer. DeSantis responded by saying that he didn’t want to be an “alarmist,” but otherwise failed to answer the question. DeSantis went on to attack his opponent's “California-style energy policy.” Democratic candidate Andrew Gillum, mayor of Tallahassee, responded by saying he would be a “governor who believes in science.” Gillum also discussed the need to grow Florida’s solar energy industry as part of a larger effort to build a green economy.
Media Matters is tracking debates in competitive Senate and gubernatorial races and encouraging moderators to ask candidates questions about climate change. So far, only 9 of 41 debates analyzed nationwide have included a climate-related question. See our scorecard.
From the October 21 Florida gubernatorial debate: