Tom Bossert, the homeland security adviser to President Trump, said Monday that it is too soon to tell if the recent deadly storms were created or fueled by climate change, and that a “trend analysis at a later date” is needed to better examine data. CNN says:

“Causality is something outside of my ability to analyze right now,” Bossert said in response to a question from CNN’s Jim Acosta. He said that hurricane seasons were “cyclical,” and noted that scientists had accurately predicted this year would bring larger [than] average storms.

Bossert’s statement followed remarks made by Scott Pruitt, head of the Environmental Protection Agency and a climate change skeptic, who said it is “insensitive” to discuss climate change instead of focusing on the current effects of the storms. He was challenged by many, including Tomas Regaldo, the Republican mayor of Miami, who told the Miami Herald, “This is the time to talk about climate change. This is the time that the president and the EPA and whoever makes decisions needs to talk about climate change. … If this isn’t climate change, I don’t know what is. This is a truly, truly poster child for what is to come.”

Text: “Don’t politicize this!”

Subtext: “I’d rather not face how specific policies have led us to this disastrous moment.” — Laila Lalami (@LailaLalami) September 10, 2017

Writes The New York Times:

For scientists, drawing links between warming global temperatures and the ferocity of hurricanes is about as controversial as talking about geology after an earthquake. But in Washington, where science is increasingly political, the fact that oceans and atmosphere are warming and that the heat is propelling storms into superstorms has become as sensitive as talking about gun control in the wake of a mass shooting. … It’s unclear whether experiencing powerful storms will change minds. A 2015 study published in the journal Climatic Change found Americans experiencing extreme weather events are not necessarily more concerned about climate change. Last week E&E News interviewed several Republican lawmakers whose constituents were hit by Hurricane Harvey and most said they had not considered the issue of climate change.