The Republican War on Science

"Science has never been more crucial than it is today to understanding the political issues facing the country; yet science and scientists have less influence with the federal government than at any time since Richard Nixon fired his science advisers. In the White House and Congress, research findings are reported in a politicized manner; spun or distorted to fit the speaker's agenda; or, when they're too inconvenient, ignored entirely. On a broad array of issues - stem cell research, climate change, missile defense, abstinence education, and many others - the Bush Administration's positions fly in the face of overwhelming scientific consensus. Federal science agencies, once fiercely independent under both Republican and Democratic presidents, are increasingly staffed by political appointees who know industry lobbyists and evangelical activists far better than they know the science." "This is not purely a Bush Administration phenomenon, but it is largely a Republican phenomenon, born of a conservative dislike of environmental, health and safety regulation, and of evolution and legalized abortion. In The Republican War on Science, Chris Mooney ties together the disparate strands of the attack on science into a compelling and frightening account of our government's increasing preference for ideologically driven pseudoscience over legitimate research."--Jacket.