Steyer targets Rubio, 2016 hopefuls on climate

Billionaire Tom Steyer’s environmental group is using its social media prowess to hit Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) on his recent climate change comments.

NextGen Climate, which Steyer founded in 2013, released a Web video on Wednesday chiding Rubio for getting caught “on the wrong side of the numbers.”

{mosads}”If you’re thinking about running for president, you don’t want to be caught on the wrong side of the numbers,” the video’s narrator states.

During a Sunday interview on ABC’s “This Week,” Rubio, a Republican presidential hopeful, said that while he believes in climate change,  he doesn’t believe human activity is causing it.

On Tuesday, Rubio sought to clarify his comments on climate change during an appearance at the National Press Club, focusing on the legislative policy proposals put forward by the administration and a number of Democrats in Congress. He didn’t repeat his statement on human activity not contributing to climate change from the earlier interview.

That did it for NextGen Climate.

The video challenges all potential 2016 presidential hopefuls, including Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), former Gov. Jeb Bush (R-Fla.), Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), Gov. Bobby Jindal (R-La.) and others to answer where they stand on climate change.

“If you are thinking about running for president, answer this: Do you stand with the facts, or do you stand with Sen. Rubio? The pressure’s on,” the video states, ending with footage of Rubio’s infamous GOP rebuttal to President Obama’s 2013 State of the Union address where he awkwardly reaches for a drink of water.

On top of the Web video, NextGen created a Tumblr, dubbed #PlanetRubio, dedicated to mocking Rubio for his climate change comments, and a Twitter account, @PlanetRubio.

The Tumblr and Twitter account consist of memes and tweets of outlandish comments that would be true on a planet run by Rubio.

“On #Planet Rubio Miami’s $3.5 trillion in assets aren’t in any way threatened by climate change,” the Tumblir states.

“On #PlanetRubio climate change is not man-made. Kanye West also lets Taylor Swift finish,” a tweet posted on the account states.

This isn’t the first time Rubio has been the sole target of Steyer’s action group. Last month, NextGen Climate launched an ad buy in Florida that targeted Rubio for backing the Keystone XL oil pipeline.

Steyer’s rise to the forefront of politics in the last year has drawn much scrutiny from GOP lawmakers, who have accused Democrats of pushing drastic climate policies for the sole purpose of attracting donations from Steyer.