Government Shuts Down, Pollution Ramps Up

<p>The political insanity in Washington can feel disconnected from reality. But two years into the Trump presidency, Americans all over the country are feeling it in the form of higher pollution.</p><p>In this week's episode, we're starting off with a look at how the government shutdown and Trump's regulatory rollback are impacting energy-related agencies, and encouraging the discharge of more chemicals, heavy metals and air pollutants.</p><p>Then Bill Gates is once again talking about the limits of renewables and the importance of nukes. Where does Gates’ message and investment thesis stack up with the reality of the global emissions picture?</p><p>Finally, we revisit the media and climate change. 60 Minutes is talking about the New Green Deal; Meet the Press devoted an hour to climate; and the&nbsp;<em>New York Times</em>&nbsp;called climate change the most important story of 2018. A sign of things of change in the media environment?</p><p>Read along with us:</p><ul><li><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/12/26/us/politics/donald-trump-environmental-regulation.html" target="_blank">New York Times</a>: 'This Is Our Reality Now'</li><li><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/jan/09/epa-government-shutdown-environmental-protection-agency-nightmare" target="_blank">The Guardian</a>:&nbsp;Americans' Health at Risk as Shutdown Slashes EPA</li><li><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/31/opinion/climate-change-weather-2018.html?rref=collection%2Fbyline%2Fdavid-leonhardt&amp;action=click&amp;contentCollection=undefined&amp;region=stream&amp;module=stream_unit&amp;version=latest&amp;contentPlacement=10&amp;pgtype=collection" target="_blank">New York Times</a>:&nbsp;The Most Important Story of 2018</li><li><a href="https://www.gatesnotes.com/About-Bill-Gates/Year-in-Review-2018?WT.mc_id=12_29_2018_21_YIR2018_BG-media_&amp;WT.tsrc=BGmedia" target="_blank">Bill Gates</a>: What I Learned at Work This Year</li><li><a href="https://www.cbs.com/shows/60_minutes/video/SRMCs3QSphj4GK_HrJ6