APRIL 24, 2012 – For the past several weeks, a front-group calling itself “Forecast the Facts” has been contacting donors to The Heartland Institute demanding they publicly commit to withdrawing their financial support. The letters and emails being sent by this group contain false statements that are plainly meant to defame and harm The Heartland Institute.
Forecast the Facts bases its campaign on a fake “climate strategy” memo distributed and probably written by disgraced climate scientist Peter Gleick, part of a global warming scandal called “Fakegate.”
“There is much irony surrounding the attack on Heartland’s donors by ‘Forecast the Facts,’ said Joseph Bast, president of The Heartland Institute. “Heartland was not the villain in the Fakegate scandal, it was the victim. Peter Gleick broke the law, repeatedly, and set back for years efforts seeking a rational debate over climate change policy. Shame on ‘Forecast the Facts’ and its backers for justifying and exploiting Peter Gleick’s bad behavior and personal tragedy.”
Heartland has posted its full reply at this link. Some of the key points include:
- Forecast the Facts is a front group created by the same individuals responsible for politicizing the science and polarizing the debate over climate change.
- Forecast the Facts has no scientists on staff, no history of participating in the climate change debate, and no credibility.
- Forecast the Facts is promoting the results of a petition that is fraudulent, based on false claims contained in a forged memo. It is grossly misrepresenting The Heartland Institute’s positions on climate change.
The Heartland Institute does not “deny” that climate change is occurring. It is among the world leaders in bringing together scientists and economists to study the issue. Heartland’s next conference, the Seventh International Conference on Climate Change, will take place immediately following the NATO Summit in Chicago from May 21 – 23. Register to attend at the conference Web site.
For more information, please contact Jim Lakely, director of communications, at [email protected] or 312/377-4000.
The Heartland Institute is a 28-year-old national nonprofit organization with offices in Chicago, Illinois and Washington, DC. Its mission is to discover, develop, and promote free-market solutions to social and economic problems. For more information, visit our Web site or call 312/377-4000.
Joseph Bast is a Senior Fellow at The Heartland Institute. He cofounded Heartland in 1984, serving as executive director then as president & CEO until January 2018. His research and writing focuses on climate change and energy policy.
