When pressed on the subject of climate change, Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) said he is "not a scientist" and therefore cannot say if climate change is real, but Rubio has no problem citing the science on vaccinations.
Rubio briefly spoke to reporters today and said the science isn't up for debate.
Rubio says it should "absolutely" be mandatory for children to receive some vaccines
— Alexandra Jaffe (@ajjaffe) February 3, 2015
Rubio, unprompted, says "There is absolutely no medical science or data whatsoever that links those vaccinations to onset of autism."
— Alexandra Jaffe (@ajjaffe) February 3, 2015
It's not that I disagree with Rubio or several other Republicans who have made similar statements, I'm simply questioning why it is so easy to cite the science on vaccinations but not the science on climate change or even birth control and abortion.
Why is this so easy and the other things so hard?
Perhaps we should knock on wood before Republican presidential hopefuls cast long shadows of doubt and sow distrust in settled science in the name of votes. Things that may not be controversial today could become controversial tomorrow.