Andrew Rosenberg

Director, Center for Science & Democracy

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Andrew Rosenberg is the director of the UCS Center for Science and Democracy. He leads UCS's efforts to advance the essential role that science, evidence-based decision making, and constructive debate play in American policy making. See Andrew's full bio.

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Andrew's Latest Posts

Trumpery, Codswallop, and this Administration’s Real Environmental Record

July 15, 2019 12:25 PM EDT

Earlier this month President Trump, surrounded by multiple Cabinet members, presented his administration’s environmental “accomplishments” in a speech to the nation. As noted by many fact-checkers, the president and his Cabinet made statements that were a series of half-truths, cherry-picked data, and outright fabrications.

One of my favorite words is “codswallop,” meaning nonsense. And a great synonym for codswallop is “trumpery.” I couldn’t have coined a better word myself to describe this ludicrous series of statements. Read more >

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Image: C-SPAN

Censoring a Senior Analyst at the State Department for Telling the Truth is a Damned Shame

July 10, 2019 5:35 PM EDT

Think of it. You are an accomplished scientist in academia and decide to serve your country by going into public service. You do your job, advising the State Department, the Administration and Congress on critical security risks like climate change, based on a huge amount of well-established evidence. But then the White House censors your testimony to the House of Representatives Intelligence Committee, apparently on the theory that if it doesn’t get in the Congressional Record the risks will dissipate. What do you do? Read more >

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Members of the USDA Advisory Committee on Beginning Farmers and Ranchers, in a December 2010 photo. USDA photo

Improving Transparency and Disclosure of Conflicts of Interest for Science Advisory Committees

May 13, 2019 2:43 PM EDT

On Wednesday this week, the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs will hold a mark-up hearing in the Federal Advisory Committee Act Amendments of 2019 introduced by Sen. Portman (R-OH). And before you stop reading, yes this is a science issue. The proposed amendments are intended to improve the transparency of the federal advisory committee process, including science advisory committees of scientists from outside government, and to disclose and reduce the impacts of conflicts of interest on those committees. Read more >

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Cartoon: Justin Bilicki

Four New (Old) Ways the White House is Trying to Restrict Science for Policymaking

April 25, 2019 12:29 PM EDT

Yesterday, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in the White House issued new “guidance” for the Administration to “Improve Implementation of the Information Quality Act”. Unfortunately, it reads like a re-hashing of some of the worst ideas for restricting the use of science in policymaking from the last five years or so. Way back in 2015, when some members of Congress were trying some of these same tricks to tip the scales in favor of regulated industry we summarized them in a Policy Forum article in Science. Here we go again—but this time, the Trump administration is trying to push these changes through unilaterally, the latest round in a long list of efforts to push science to the sidelines. Read more >

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Photo: C-SPAN

From Profound Conflicts of Interest to a Blind Eye for Harassment, Barry Myers Is the Wrong Choice for NOAA

April 24, 2019 9:19 AM EDT

Myers’ nomination is now approaching a vote on the Senate floor to confirm him as NOAA administrator. NOAA and the nation don’t deserve an unqualified and conflicted nominee that turns a blind eye to sexual harassment. Read more >

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