The Washington Post reports:

Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.), who has become a staunch Trump ally since running against him for president in 2016, has consistently attempted to push his party to address climate change. He worked in 2010 with then-Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.) to try to pass comprehensive climate and energy legislation, an effort that ultimately failed. Graham has endorsed a carbon tax and challenged his party to stop giving credence to the out­liers who question the science.

“Here’s a question you need to ask everybody running as a Republican: What is the environmental policy of the Republican Party?” Graham said on CNN during his 2016 presidential campaign. “When I ask that question, I get a blank stare.”

Graham did not comment on Trump’s response to the recent climate assessment, and he declined a request for an interview on the topic. His spokesman said that his views have not changed.

Sen.-elect Mitt Romney (R-Utah) also has sounded alarms within his party, saying that he believes climate change is happening and that humans are a factor. During his Senate campaign in August, he said the changing climate will make wildfires more common and more dangerous in Utah.

During an address before college students in St. Louis last year, Romney said he was “concerned about the anti-scientific attitude” from members of his party.

“I happen to believe that there is climate change, and I think humans contribute to it in a substantial way, and therefore I look with openness to all the ideas that might be able to address that,” he said. “The idea of doing nothing, in my view, is a recipe for disaster . . . it’s going to require presidential leadership.”

But over the past week, Romney has not commented on Trump’s comments or the climate assessment that came out. He declined requests for an interview. [Continue reading…]