Inhofe's family built an igloo on the National Mall five years ago as a jab at former Vice President Al Gore. Inhofe's latest climate pitch: Snow joke

Winter-weary Washington needs no reminder of the season, but Senate Environment and Public Works Chairman Jim Inhofe offered one anyway today — tossing a snowball on the Senate floor as he argued that human activity isn’t affecting climate change.

The Oklahoma Republican, whose family built an igloo on the National Mall five years ago as a jab at former Vice President Al Gore, lobbed his snowball gently before arguing that the risks of global warming are exaggerated.


“The reality is that climate change has been occurring since the beginning of time,” Inhofe said.

Most scientists agree that greenhouse gas emissions from human activity are accelerating the warming of the planet and the resulting rises in sea levels and average temperatures — a trend not contradicted by the continued existence of winter. The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change warned in November that a disastrous rise in planetary temperatures is growing more likely unless nations drastically cut global carbon emissions.

Still, Inhofe’s cheeky snowball toss captured the attention of Twitter. “Just wow,” a White House spokesman wrote of the move.

One thing Inhofe made sure to do was follow Senate procedure. Near the end of his remarks, he clarified that he’d obtained unanimous consent to “use a prop on the floor.”

An Inhofe spokeswoman did not immediately return a request to clarify who, if anyone, caught the snowball.