Demagogue

Chris Mooney is my go-to guy on this issue. Right now, he's all over the emerging abuse of science allegations at the Interior Department. He's pulled out the key components of a report by the Union of Concerned Scientists.

USC and PEER have surveyed 400 scientists who work for the Fish and Wildlife Service. (That number represents the 30 percent of scientists who "returned completed surveys, despite agency directives not to reply—even on personal time.") The press release sums up the situation pretty well.

"The survey results illustrate an alarming disregard for scientific facts among political appointees entrusted to protect threatened and endangered species," said UCS Washington Representative Lexi Shultz. "Employing scientists only to undermine their findings is at best a mismanagement of public resources and at worst a serious betrayal of the public trust."

A number of the essays spoke to the climate of fear within the agency. One biologist in Alaska wrote, "Recently, [Department of Interior] officials have forced changes in Service documents, and worse, they have forced upper-level managers to say things that are incorrect…It's one thing for the Department to dismiss our recommendations, it's quite another to be forced (under veiled threat of removal) to say something that is counter our best professional judgment." A manager wrote, "There is a culture of fear of retaliation in mid-level management. If the manager were to speak out for resources, they fear loss of jobs or funding for their programs." And a biologist from the Pacific region added that the only "hope [is] we get sued by an environmental or conservation organization."

Sadly, as Chris pointed out this morning, the Washington Post and the New York Times have not reported on the story yet. Let's hope it's only because they have more extensive coverage in the works.