The science community isn’t so pleased with one of their most prominent members: Bill Nye the Science Guy, who attended last night’s State of the Union address with a Republican lawmaker.
Nye had accepted the invitation of Rep. Jim Bridenstine, of Oklahoma, who is President Trump’s nominee to lead NASA.
In a series of tweets on Monday, Nye made his case for heading to the Capitol, including that his attendance ‘should not be interpreted as an endorsement of this administration, or of Congressman Bridenstine’s nomination, or seen as an acceptance of the recent attacks on science and the scientific community.’
Bill Nye the Science Guy (left) attended the State of the Union as a guest of Republican Rep. Jim Bridenstine (right), President Trump’s nominee to lead NASA
Bill Nye the Science Guy sent out a series of tweets explaining why he decided to attend the State of the Union with a Republican lawmaker
Still, the group known as ‘500 Women Scientists’ was not pleased, blasting the decision Tuesday in an editorial written for Scientific American magazine, according to reporting from NPR.
Nye, they said, had ‘tacitly endorsed’ Republican policies and put ‘his own personal brand over the interests of the scientific community at large.’
‘Rep. Bridenstine is a controversial nominee who refuses to state that climate change is driven by human activity, and even introduced legislation to remove Earth sciences from NASA’s scientific mission,’ the group wrote.
‘Further, he’s worked to undermine civil rights, including pushing for crackdowns on immigrants, a ban on gay marriage, and abolishing the Department of Education,’ the editorial said.
Bill Nye the Science Guy (right) was spotted with another lawmaker, this time Democratic Rep. Ted Deutch (left), last night on Capitol Hill
‘As women and scientists, we refuse to separate science from everyday life. We refuse to keep our heads down and our mouths shut,’ the editorial read.
Nye had argued that it was important to break bread with those across the aisle and that interest in space travel was often a common bond.
‘While the Congressman and I disagree on a great many issues – we share a deep respect for NASA and its achievements and a strong interest in the future of space exploration,’ Nye said.
Space travel wasn’t enough to appease the ‘500 Women Scientists.’
‘As someone with a show alleging to save the world, Bill Nye has a responsibility to acknowledge the importance of NASA’s vast mission, not just one aspect of it,’ the editorial said. ‘He should use his celebrity to elevate the importance of science in NASA’s mission – not waste the opportunity to lobby for space exploration at a cost to everyone else.’