Newt Gingrich, self-described "amateur paleontologist," says "life was fine" during the age of the dinosaurs even though Earth was "dramatically warmer" than it is today.
During a
climate change debate on CNN's "Crossfire" on Monday, the former Republican House speaker and presidential candidate asked the panel, "What's the right temperature for the planet?"
"Assume for a minute that we have the capacity to actually decide the planet's temperature," he continued. "What kind of hubris does it take to say, I know exactly what this planet's temperature ought to be and I'm going to manage it to that effect?"
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Co-host Van Jones, though, argued that humans could wind up "cooking the planet" if they don't work to reverse global warming.
Gingrich countered, "The age of the dinosaurs was dramatically warmer than this is right now and it didn't cook the plant. In fact, life was fine."
He also said humans prefer warmer climates.
"The number of people leaving Minnesota this evening to get to the Caribbean versus the number of people leaving the Caribbean to try to get to Minnesota would argue that slightly warmer wouldn't be a crisis." Gingrich said.
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