Former Sen. Jim Inhofe, a Republican from Oklahoma, has died at age 89, Tulsa World and Politico report.
AdvertisementThe Oklahoma Republican first became chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee in 2003, and served as the committee's top Republican until 2017.
Inhofe's position as chair of the environmental committee offered him a prominent platform from which he denied the science behind climate change.
But despite his record on climate change, Inhofe notably had a warm friendship with his counterpart Boxer, a liberal Democrat who was outspoken about the need to address climate change.
Advertisement"Jim is a climate change denier, he is really, really conservative," said Sanders, noted that even praising Inhofe had the potential to "probably ruin his political career."
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