Gov. Perry's views on global warming leaves Texas out of initiative

In a speech a couple of weeks ago in California, Texas Gov. Rick Perry had this to say about global warming:

"I've heard Al Gore talk about man-made global warming so much that I'm starting to think that his mouth is the leading source of all that supposedly deadly carbon dioxide. Virtually every day another scientist leaves the global warming bandwagon. ... But you won't read about that in the press because they have already invested in one side of the story. I'm not saying we shouldn't be good stewards of our environment. We should. I am just saying when politics hijack science, it quells true scientific debate and can have dire consequences for our future."

Perry's policy analyst Zak Covar said Perry doesn't believe global warming is "an issue," and when Covar was asked to back up the statement about scientists leaving "the global warming bandwagon," he listed two dozen recent articles, none of which mentioned any scientists.

It's no wonder then Texas wasn't one of the seven western states that joined with four Canadian provinces in a sweeping plan announced today to reduce global warming emissions. The states represent 20 percent of the U.S. economy and the provinces represent 73 percent of Canada's economy. The plan would cut greenhouse gas emissions by 15 percent below 2005 levels during the next 12 years. The seven states are Arizona, California, Montana, New Mexico, Oregon, Washington and Utah. The provinces are British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec.