It's hard to not sound churlish to remark upon this in the face of the devastation of the Gulf Coast due to Hurricane Harvey, but last week, San Francisco experienced the hottest day ever recorded in history at 106 degrees. In my hometown in the East Bay, temperatures went up to 113 degrees, and cities scrambled to put together "cooling centers" for residents (especially seniors) who have never needed to have air conditioning but were in grave danger last week. Hurricane Irma is currently gaining strength in the Caribbean and could potentially be a Category 5 hurricane along the southern seaboard. The flooding in Houston hasn't had a chance to recede (and guess what? It's hitting toxic waste now! I'm sure Scott Pruitt isn't concerned at all) and Irma (and Lidia behind her) may add even more. Storms are stronger, lasting longer, causing more damage, temperatures are seriously out of whack.
You'd think we could talk about climate change as a reality in front of us.
But nah, let's talk palace intrigue. That's better for ratings, right? Let's talk about the "Honorable" Omarosa being the next in line for John Kelly's hatchet because she barges in to the Oval Office with Breitbart and InfoWars articles to get Trump worked up. Let's talk about the shoes Melania wore to visit flood victims. Let's cover Trump's boast of a million dollar donation as if it's a real thing and not just another in a string of lies.
It is a sad statement on the state of cable news today that a smarter conversation on climate change can be had in Teen Vogue than on any one of the shows listed below:
There can be no more shortcuts to savings and profit as we invest in the skeletons that support our civilization. As we mourn for Houston, we must go beyond thoughts, prayers, and donations — which is not to say all of these are not necessary. But we must also insist on having a mind for future prevention. The nonsense political debate will continue to rage with regard to how much man is to blame in the undeniable trend toward climate change, but science guarantees us that the sort of extreme weather unfolding in Houston is our new normal, regardless of its root cause. Working toward adaptation through preparation is not a choice, but an inevitability. Our current approach is like sitting next to a sandcastle, pretending we had no idea it was going to get swept away — only the sandcastle is civilization, and we know damn well that the waves are coming in.
ABC's "This Week" - From Houston. Gov. Greg Abbott, R-Texas; Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo; FEMA Administrator Brock Long; Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-Texas. Panel: Matthew Dowd, Houston City Council member Amanda Edwards, and presidential historian Mark Updegrove.
NBC's "Meet the Press" - Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner; Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo. Panel: Matthew Continetti; Eddie S. Glaude, Jr., chair of the Department for African-American Studies at Princeton University; Susan Page; and Kristen Welker.
CBS' "Face the Nation" - Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator Brock Long; Turner; Executive Director of Harris County Public Health, Dr. Umair Shah; Kevin Book, a Senior Associate specializing in energy and national security for the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Panel: Nancy Youssef, Margaret Talev, David Sanger and Ruth Marcus.
CNN's "State of the Union" - Gov. Greg Abbott, R-Texas; Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz.. Panel: former Sen. Rick Santorum, R-Pa.; Neera Tanden, president of the Center for American Progress; Carlos Gutierrez, former commerce secretary; and Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif.
CNN's "Fareed Zakaria GPS" - "The Next Big Idea" with artificial intelligence experts Andrew McAfee and Erik Brynjolfsson; neuroscientist Lisa Genova; computer scientist Sebastian Thrun; biographer Walter Isaacson; and celebrity chef Dan Barber.
CNN's "Reliable Sources" - Errol Louis, political anchor, Spectrum News; Sarah Westwood of the Washington Examiner; Alice Stewart, CNN political commentator and former communications director of Ted Cruz for President; Will Bunch, national columnist of Philly.com; actor Harry Shearer, writer-director of the documentary “The Big Uneasy”; Clyde and Maggie Haberman, of The New York Times.
"Fox News Sunday" - Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin; Abbott. Panel: former U.S. Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah; Jeff Mason of Reuters; Michael Needham, CEO of Heritage Action for America; and Marie Harf, former State Department spokesperson.
So what's catching your eye this morning?
