President Obama takes online questions while visiting the National Hurricane Center in Miami.
Screengrab/Twitter/President Obama
On Thursday, President Obama took his climate change message to Twitter after a meeting at the National Hurricane Center in Miami, the Wall Street Journal reported. According to the WSJ, this is the first time Obama used his new Twitter account to connect with online users. A search of the hashtag #AskPOTUS, however, showed that Obama got hammered by critics, with one person asking the president: "Why do you hate Christians?"
"Just got a hurricane preparedness briefing in Miami," Obama tweeted. "Acting on climate change is critical. Got climate Qs? I'll answer at 1pm ET."
Initially, the questions remained on topic, but the hashtag was quickly "hijacked" as critics hammered the president. "Given that global climate constantly changes, what average global temperature is The Right Temperature," one person asked.
"[S]ince climate change is so important, what will our military wear when fighting ISIS?" another critic asked. "Shorts? Winter jackets? Rain boots?"
"When are you going to take seriously the growing body of compelling evidence that shows climate change is NOT 'settled science'?" tweeted a third critic. A search of Twitter found many more critics.
"How is the threat of climate change 'imminent' but that of ISIL, which now controls more land than Great Britain, not imminent?" one person asked. "Does it concern you that the oceans are being polluted by the blood of Christians beheaded by Islamic State on the beach?" asked another person.
One person asked Obama why he wouldn't release the full text of his proposed secret trade deal while another questioner wondered how the deal would "save the planet." Another person using the handle "Godzilla" asked if he or she was personally responsible for climate change.
Some of the questions were downright silly. "Why did Bush do it?" one person asked. Another wondered when marijuana would be made legal. One Twitter user wondered what qualities Obama looked for in a spouse.
"[W]hy do you rationalize the violence of #Islam while attacking the morality of our #Christian heritage?" one person asked. "In what ways do you plan to further eviscerate the Constitution in your remaining days in office?" another person asked.
Infowars' Alex Jones also had a question for Obama. "Do you ever visit Frank Marshall Davis' grave?" he asked. Recently, a video came to light in which Obama named Davis as a mentor.
Obama answered a few questions, including some dealing with sports and student loans. He also told one Twitter user that "more severe weather events lead to displacement, scarcity, stressed populations; all increase likelihood of global conflict."
Obama closed off the online forum by tweeting: "Thanks for the questions! This was fun. I've got to run, but let’s do it again soon. Tell me what you're doing to #ActOnClimate." Twitchy said Obama "didn’t even answer the most important question of all." One person noted the racial makeup of a picture Obama tweeted, asking: "You’re surround by white dudes in that pic. Don’t you think it’s time for a #ClimateChange?"
SUGGESTED LINKS
- Obama: 'Planet will boil over' if Africans have air conditioning, cars
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