Earlier this year, when the EPA was putting together its finding that carbon-dioxide endangers the public health, an economist at the agency named Al Carlin drafted a short report disputing the scientific consensus on global warming and asked his bosses to consider it. The bosses heard him out, but decided, in the end, to leave climate science to actual scientists. And with good reason: As NASA's Gavin Schmidt explains, Carlin's "critique" makes a bunch of very basic errors—no surprise, given that he's not a climatologist and was mostly just parroting right-wing pseudoscience.
Anyway, you'd expect the story to die there. Alas, no: The rogue's gallery of climate deniers—from the Competitive Enterprise Institute to James Inhofe—is now shrieking that the Obama administration suppressed The Truth about global warming. Inhofe has ordered a full investigation. You know how it goes. Over at Grist, Jonathan Hiskes has the whole sordid tale if you're in the mood. Personally, I'm holding out for a better fake scandal—this one's a little disappointing.
--Bradford Plumer