On his Tuesday CNN show, Don Lemon, who is from Florida, tried to argue with Jamie Rohme, who is the acting director at the NOAA National Hurricane Center, about whether climate change is to blame for the intensity of Hurricane Ian. It did not go well for Lemon.
Lemon started the climate change portion of the interview by asking, “So, meteorologists, Jamie, have said that this storm could be entering another period of rapid intensification. Can you tell us what this is and what effect climate change has on this phenomenon?”
Initially, Rohme felt the whole idea to be a distraction from the immediate urgency of the matter, “Well, we can come back and talk about climate change at a later time. I want to focus on the here and now. We think the rapid intensification is probably almost done. There could be a little bit more intensification as it's still over the warm waters of the Eastern Gulf of Mexico, but I don't think we're going to get any more rapid intensification.”
After Rohme observed “a second eye wall forming around the inner eye wall…that should arrest development,” Lemon tried again, “So, listen, I just -- I'm just trying to get that you said you want to talk about climate change, but what -- what effect does climate change have on this phenomenon that -- that is happening now. Because it seems these storms are intensifying. That's the question here.”
In his second rebuttal, Rohme was more scientific, “I don't think you can link climate change to any one event on the whole, on the cumulative, a climate change may be making storms worse. But to link it to any one event, I would caution against them.”
Sure, Rohme may be the director of the NHC, but Don Lemon is a native Floridian, “Okay. Well, they -- listen, I grew up there and these storms are intensifying something is causing them to intensify”
Of course, Rohme is correct and Lemon’s entire premise is that if we all vote for candidates and legislation he supports we can appease Neptune and tame hurricanes. Tuesday was not the first time in recent memory that Lemon got schooled by someone who actually knows what they're talking about.
This segment was sponsored by Crest.
Here is a transcript for the September 28 show:
CNN Don Lemon Tonight
9/27/2022
10:09 PM ET
DON LEMON: Yes, that's a big area. So, meteorologists, Jamie, have said that this storm could be entering another period of rapid intensification. Can you tell us what this is and what effect climate change has on this phenomenon?
JAMIE ROHME: Well, we can come back and talk about climate change at a later time. I want to focus on the here and now. We think the rapid intensification is probably almost done. There could be a little bit more intensification as it's still over the warm waters of the Eastern Gulf of Mexico, but I don't think we're going to get any more rapid intensification.
If you look here, you can actually see pretty interesting for your viewers. You can actually see a second eye wall forming around the inner eye wall, and that's basically the second eye wall has overtaken the original eye wall, and that should arrest development.
LEMON: So, listen, I just -- I'm just trying to get that you said you want to talk about climate change, but what -- what effect does climate change have on this phenomenon that -- that is happening now. Because it seems these storms are intensifying. That's the question here.
ROHME: I don't think you can link climate change to any one event –
LEMON: Okay.
ROHME: -- on the whole, on the cumulative, a climate change may be making storms worse. But to link it to any one event, I would caution against them.
LEMON: Okay. Well, they -- listen, I grew up there and these storms are intensifying something is causing them to intensify. So, this storm is just -- it's a massive one. Its effects are also being felt in the southern part of Florida.
