Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin has decided to pretend that the health risks caused by greenhouse gases don’t exist—but the Fox News chyron beneath him told a different story.

“EPA is proposing to rescind the 2009 Obama EPA Endangerment Finding to eliminate all of the greenhouse gas emissions regulations that followed,” Zeldin said during an interview on Fox News Tuesday, “including electric vehicle mandates, which amounts to a trillion dollars’ worth of savings.”

In December 2009, the EPA published an Endangerment Finding that stated that the current and projected concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere “threaten the public health and welfare of current and future generations.” Greenhouse gases trap outgoing infrared heat within the Earth’s atmosphere, resulting in global warming.

Just a few months ago, Zeldin couldn’t even say whether carbon was a pollutant (spoiler alert, it is). Now he is primed to remove the finding that set the standard for multiple industries to limit their greenhouse gas emissions.

But as independent journalist Aaron Rupar pointed out on X, Zeldin’s announcement was rendered immediately ridiculous by the chyron just beneath him.

As the anti-science flunkie in charge of the EPA happily announced his plan to strip greenhouse gas regulations, an “Extreme Heat” warning appeared in the bottom right corner. The chyron below him displayed the “Hottest Temps Now” from different cities across the country: 102 degrees in Arizona; 100 degrees in Florida; 100 degrees in Georgia; 99 degrees in California.

Zeldin: "EPA is proposing to rescind the 2009 Obama EPA endangerment finding to eliminate all of the greenhouse gas emissions regulations that followed." pic.twitter.com/2e3nSltX0o

This week, a record-breaking heat wave struck the eastern United States, with excessive heat advisories being issued everywhere from Florida to New York. Over the last decade, heat-related deaths have doubled in the U.S.

The Obama-era Endangerment Finding that Zeldin would like to repeal directly linked greenhouse gas emissions to widespread changes in extreme temperatures around the world—adding that rising temperatures would likely turn deadly.

“The impact on mortality and morbidity associated with increases in average temperatures, which increase the likelihood of heat waves, also provides support for a public health endangerment finding,” the report stated, noting that “heat is already the leading cause of weather related deaths in the United States.”

The Trump administration just dashed any chance of a new trade deal with India, imposing a 25 percent tariff on the country Wednesday along with a penalty for buying military equipment and energy from Russia.

The world’s most populous nation has held off on offering new concessions to the U.S., announcing on Tuesday that it was prepared to accept tariffs as high as 25 percent on its exports to American consumers.

But with just two days on the clock to finalize the deal, it doesn’t seem that Donald Trump has a firm handle on India’s jaded approach to the negotiations.

“WE HAVE A MASSIVE TRADE DEFICIT WITH INDIA!!!” he exclaimed on Truth Social Wednesday.

The U.S. imports more goods and services from India than it sells. In 2024, the country’s trade deficit with India was $45.7 billion—a 5.4 percent increase over the prior year, according to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.

“Remember, while India is our friend, we have, over the years, done relatively little business with them because their Tariffs are far too high, among the highest in the World, and they have the most strenuous and obnoxious non-monetary Trade Barriers of any Country,” Trump wrote in an earlier post.

“Also, they have always bought a vast majority of their military equipment from Russia, and are Russia’s largest buyer of ENERGY, along with China, at a time when everyone wants Russia to STOP THE KILLING IN UKRAINE—ALL THINGS NOT GOOD!” he continued. “INDIA WILL THEREFORE BE PAYING A TARIFF OF 25 PERCENT, PLUS A PENALTY FOR THE ABOVE, STARTING ON AUGUST FIRST. THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION TO THIS MATTER. MAGA!”

Historically, it takes U.S. officials roughly 18 months to negotiate a new trade agreement with another country. That boils down to exhaustive reviews of the country’s prior trade, sorting through thousands of line items of products, and analyzing the complex minutiae of local import and export laws.

Despite the fact that India was one of the first countries to open up new trade negotiations with the U.S. in February, even Trump administration officials have acknowledged that the deal with India is still half-baked. U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told CNBC Monday that India has “strong interest in opening portions of its market” to U.S. products but that the talks require more time. Last week, India’s Trade Minister Piyush Goyal told Reuters that India was making “great progress” with the Trump administration.

But blowing past traditional expectations in favor of baseless projections has not proven to be a strong success strategy for the second Trump administration. Instead, choosing to throw the country into a trading blitz with dozens of its biggest trading partners has effectively forced the U.S. into a regrettable losing position, with American officials constantly having to hedge on what were supposed to be adamant deadlines.

If Trump is to be believed, however, then Friday could be the exception.

“THE AUGUST FIRST DEADLINE IS THE AUGUST FIRST DEADLINE—IT STANDS STRONG, AND WILL NOT BE EXTENDED,”........

© New Republic