Science and faith in the senate

Emphases mine.

BBC NEWS | Americas | Al Gore makes global warming plea:

...Representative Joe Barton, the leading Republican on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, challenged global warming science as "uneven and evolving".

"You're not just off a little, you're totally wrong," he said of Mr Gore's conclusions that carbon dioxide emissions contribute to global warming....

My understanding is that there's probably a 1/15-1/20 chance that we'll eventually discover that carbon dioxide emissions have been a relatively small contributor to global climate change to date. Even if the 20:1 odds paid off, Mr. Barton, of course, would still be operating on faith, not reason. There is nothing in the data to support his confidence, ergo it must arise from some sort of faith.

Had history played out a little differently, he would be chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Chairman. The thought chills the soul.

How can any reasoning person vote for the modern GOP? The party needs to be rebuilt from top to bottom.