Democrats hit The White House hard last year! Why not now?

Back on Thursday, Oct 25, 2007 the Democrats hit The White House hard on global warming testimony .. Why are the same candidates in the primaries not shouting louder?

They accused President George W. Bush's administration of trying to hide the threat from global warming by censoring testimony of the top US health official on the issue.

California Senator Barbara Boxer wrote to Bush to complain that prepared comments by Dr Julie Gerberding, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) had been "heavily edited" by the administration.

"I am deeply concerned that important scientific and health information was removed from the CDC Director's testimony at the last minute," Boxer wrote.

She later told reporters: "this administration wants to downplay the threat global warming poses."

Boxer's office released a copy of the testimony which it said had been leaked by angry CDC officials, showing large swathes of Gerberding's remarks crossed out.

One passage that was not eventually delivered at a hearing of the Senate committee on environment and public works on October 23, went into possible impacts on health of global warming.

"Scientific evidence supports the view that the earth's climate is changing," Gerberding was to have said according to the testimony.

"A broad array of organizations, (federal, state, local, multilateral, faith based, private and non-governmental) is working to address climate change.

"Despite this extensive activity, the public health effects of climate change remain largely unaddressed. CDC considers climate change a serious public health concern."

On Wednesday, White House spokeswoman Dana Perino denied that Gerberding's testimony had been censored when it was submitted to a review process in the Executive Office of the President.

"This administration's policy on climate change is an open book," she said.

"Scientists across the administration were taking a look at it, and there was a decision that she would focus where she is an expert, which is on CDC."