Deposition sheds troubling new light on the #RICO20/DOJ “potential investigation of climate deniers”

Jagadish Shukla, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA, Edward Maibach, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA, Paul Dirmeyer, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA, Barry Klinger, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA, Paul Schopf, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA, David Straus, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA, Edward Sarachik, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, Michael Wallace, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, Alan Robock, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ, Eugenia Kalnay, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, William Lau, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, (not shown) Kevin Trenberth, National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, CO , T.N. Krishnamurti, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL, Vasu Misra, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL, Ben Kirtman, University of Miami, Miami, FL, Robert Dickinson, University of Texas, Austin, TX, Michela Biasutti, Earth Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY, Mark Cane, Columbia University, New York, NY, Lisa Goddard, Earth Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY, Alan Betts, Atmospheric Research, Pittsford, VT

Yesterday, in a Senate hearing, Attorney General Loretta Lynch acknowledged internal discussions about possible Department of Justice racketeering investigations into political opponents for “forestall[ing] America’s response to climate change” — that is, political speech, in opposition to a political agenda.

The most high-profile contribution to this campaign comes from certain publicly-funded professors, expressly in the capacity of their privileged positions, calling for such investigations in the widely circulated “RICO-20” letter. Not one of them cited to any paper authored, no honorary or academic society, or any award as somehow credentialing their stance. They called for these inquisitions solely citing to their positions with (largely) public universities.

In light of these efforts to abuse governmental power, I and the Competitive Enterprise Institute attempted to obtain documents shedding light on how taxpayer-funded professors used their public positions and resources in this campaign.

We were stonewalled by George Mason University, where six of the RICO-20 teach. GMU at first denied it had any records which we now know exist. GMU has since produced them in response to a subpoena, and they are under protective order awaiting ruling on their release — hundreds of emails related to this campaign, sent and received using public resources, but withheld from public scrutiny.

With yesterday’s admission by the Attorney General, we thought the public would benefit from reading about this campaign, including what publicly funded academics using their taxpayer-funded perches to call for such investigations really know about their own demands.

The following is a transcript of a February deposition of George Mason University Professor Edward Maibach, co-ringleader of the “RICO-20”, in the Virginia Freedom of Information Act suit Horner et al. v. George Mason University.

These records we seek are documents the academy doesn’t want to let the public see. Taking the transcript into account and the subject matter of the records requested, one can draw reasonable assumptions about any documents responsive to our request: they shed light on how this letter came about, how this campaign to neuter free speech works, with whom, and that the campaigners are likely recipients of some of the money they see being shaken out of those they view as political opponents.

If the court rules in our favor and orders those emails released, they’ll tell a very interesting story, and be quite instructive to the public.

In the meantime, some aspects of that story can be learned from our February deposition of Professor Maibach, the transcript of which is below. We believe you will see the effort’s two principal objectives are to cut off private funding for others — those who oppose the RICO-20’s political agenda — and obtain ever more money for their campaign, in the form of a settlement modeled after the tobacco master settlement.

In particular, check out pages 17 – 32, 45 – 48, 59 – 60, 67 – 72, 80 – 83.

The ones who should be prosecuted are those who deliberately deceive the public that global warming is happening, man-caused, etc. That includes the entire Obongo/Lynch administration.

Missrepresenting the truth to impede government action. Oh no. They are coming after us. Let me state for the record.

I did not have sex with that climate change denialist.

None of of my emails that I sent or received were marked as climate change denial.

Any negative actions on my part were due to a climate change denial video I did not watch.

There is not a shred of evidence suggesting any laws were broken.

And finally, if you like your climate change denialist, you can keep your climate change denialist.

So then we see in one of the question/answers that it’s OK by them IF deniers are investigated by the Federal Government, but NOT the advocates whom they state should be investigated by their funders.

Gimme a break. They want the deck stacked in their favor.

Seems like a classic case of, “Those pointing the finger are guilty of what they’re accusing others of”...because it is how THEY think and how THEY behave, it’s the only reason it comes to mind and why they accuse others of such things.

I don’t believe there is major remaining institution that hasn’t been soiled by the Left.

Academe in general has long been on a downward spiral, but the damage was limited to the liberal and soft science arts.

So today we witness the corruption of hard sciences. As their very existence has come to depend on government grants, they are more than willing to not only dance to Leftist tunes, but to serve as tools to destroy the rat’s political opponents.

Throw in corruption of our military services, and the circle is complete.

There is little time to restore free government.

Don’t deny “Climate Change”. Simply embrace it - adamantly, and then quote days of the scientists who stipulate that it’s too late to do anything about it. The Marxists will have no where to go with that.

I'll bet it would have gone forward but for the fact that one of the organizers of the effort to accuse deniers,Jagadish Shukla, George Mason University, turned out to have some financial skeletons so they had to back off.

Don't worry, they'll find a new group and try again.

Obama just hates the first amendment. It’s only good when convenient for leftist control freak propaganda. He’s been the absolute worst president with the first amendment. Civil rights for me but not for thee.

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