Sarah Palin might have changed her tone on whether climate change is man-made, but she had no trouble throwing shade Thursday at a famous science educator who supports the idea.
Palin was in Washington, D.C., to promote "Climate Hustle," a documentary film that seeks to "debunk the myth and hype about man-made global warming."
The film includes perspectives from multiple scientists, most of whom believe man-made global warming to be a hoax. It also includes an interview with Bill Nye, the longtime educator and former "Science Guy" children's TV show host, who supports the idea that humans are contributing to climate change.
Palin, a former Alaska governor and vice-presidential candidate who worked as an Anchorage sports reporter before going into politics, questioned Nye's credentials, reports The Guardian.
"Bill Nye is as much a scientist as I am," Palin told reporters. "He's a kids' show actor. He's not a scientist."
Nye has a degree in mechanical engineering and has written numerous books about science. Despite his entertainment background, he's been active in the science community, even helping NASA develop a sundial for the Mars Exploration Rover project. However, Climate Depot considers Nye a "warmist."
[Related: As governor, Sarah Palin accepted climate change science. Now she's backing a film disputing it.]
Palin said a "political agenda" is driving the world effort to cut carbon emissions.
"They have studied the data that they are erroneously delivering to the public to make us think that we can somehow change the weather and how they do that is to grow government and allow the government to have more control over us, our homes, our businesses, our families, our lives, and it's quite unfortunate because these people must be purposely doing this, right? Because they are smart enough to know better," Palin said.
It had been reported Nye would attend Thursday's event, sparking discussion of a possible climate change debate between the two. However, a spokesman for Nye said in a Wednesday email to Alaska Dispatch News that Nye had never been invited to participate in the panel discussion.
The film is produced by a conservative organization Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow and its affiliated to ClimateDepot.com. It will be shown on May 2 at 400 theaters nationwide, according to the film's website.