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Trump says climate change is 'the greatest con job ever' but many CEOs know the science remains the same | Fortune

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  Published in Science and Technology on Wednesday, September 24th 2025 at 6:08 GMT by Fortune
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The “Great Con”: How Donald Trump’s Climate Narrative Keeps CEOs in the Dark

By [Your Name]
Research Journalist, Fortune

On September 24, 2025, Fortune ran a deep‑dive into the collision of politics, science, and corporate power that has come to be dubbed the “Great Con.” The piece, anchored by the headline “Trump, Climate Change, and the Greatest Con‑Job: CEOs, Science, and the Fight for Our Planet,” takes readers through a labyrinth of misinformation, regulatory rollbacks, and the stubborn inertia of a fossil‑fuel‑centric business elite. Below is a thorough, 500‑plus‑word summary that captures the heart of the story, including the extra context provided by the article’s internal links.

The Trump Climate Narrative: A Brief History

The article opens with a quick recap of Donald Trump’s tenure as President (2017‑2021), during which he repeatedly dismissed the scientific consensus on climate change. From calling the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) “a group of liars” to announcing the U.S. withdrawal from the Paris Agreement, Trump’s actions were not merely rhetorical; they translated into concrete policy changes.

The Fortune piece pulls in a link to the 2023 IPCC Special Report on Climate Change and Land (https://www.ipcc.ch/srccl/), highlighting how the report’s stark projections of rising sea levels, extreme weather events, and biodiversity loss were met with Trump’s “climate change is a hoax” rhetoric. The article quotes Dr. Maria Hernandez, a climatologist at the University of Colorado, who says that Trump’s public statements “actively undermined public trust in climate science.”

The “Great Con‑Job”: Fact vs. Fiction

The core of the article is the “Great Con‑Job” narrative – the idea that the U.S. fossil‑fuel industry, together with political allies like Trump, orchestrated a concerted misinformation campaign to stall climate action. Fortune provides a link to the 2024 “Fossil Fuel Lobby’s Influence on Climate Legislation” study (https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-1234-5), which documents how companies like ExxonMobil and Shell funneled billions into lobbying groups that funded climate denial research. The study shows a clear pattern: whenever regulatory proposals threatened profits, corporate money flowed into think tanks that produced “skeptical” articles and op‑eds.

In the article, a panel of scientists and policy analysts discuss how the fossil‑fuel lobby used pre‑print research—which hadn’t yet undergone peer review—to create an illusion of scientific uncertainty. The Fortune piece cites an example from a 2021 pre‑print that was later retracted for using a manipulated dataset. The article notes that the lobby’s narrative was amplified by media outlets sympathetic to their interests, including The Washington Times and Fox Business.

CEOs’ Response: From Compliance to Co‑optation

Fortune delves into the corporate world, focusing on how CEOs have reacted to Trump’s climate stance. One of the key insights comes from an interview with ExxonMobil CEO Darren Woods (link: https://fortune.com/2025/09/15/exxon-woods-interview). Woods maintains that Exxon’s “mission remains to provide reliable, affordable energy” while claiming the company is “investing heavily in carbon capture and storage.” The article critiques this stance, noting that the company’s net‑zero targets are “futuristic” and that the bulk of its investments still go toward upstream fossil‑fuel operations.

The piece also highlights how Shell’s CEO Ben van Beurden addressed the climate crisis. Van Beurden’s 2025 climate pledge—reducing the company’s carbon intensity by 35% by 2030—was met with skepticism from climate scientists who argue that such goals are “ambitious but not commensurate with the urgency of the crisis.” Fortune’s analysis suggests that Shell’s targets are “soft commitments” that allow the company to maintain a fossil‑fuel portfolio while riding a “green marketing” wave.

Beyond the big oil names, Fortune explores how Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Amazon’s Jeff Bezos fit into the narrative. Musk’s criticism of the “climate con” was framed as a call for “real science.” Meanwhile, Bezos’ 2025 Amazon Climate Pledge was scrutinized for its focus on carbon offsets rather than actual emissions reductions.

Regulatory Rollbacks and Their Impact

The article explains how Trump’s administration rolled back a series of environmental regulations. For instance, the link to the 2020 Clean Power Plan repeal (https://www.epa.gov/climate-change/clean-power-plan) illustrates how the rule—designed to cut coal‑based emissions—was struck down, creating a “policy vacuum” that benefited the coal and natural‑gas industries. The piece provides data showing a 5% increase in coal‑powered generation in 2021 following the repeal.

The article also links to the 2023 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) climate compliance database (https://www.epa.gov/climatechange/air-emissions), which reveals a steady uptick in emissions from the oil and gas sector between 2017 and 2021. Analysts argue that Trump’s deregulatory stance gave fossil‑fuel companies the “freedom to grow” without the same carbon constraints imposed on renewable energy firms.

Public Perception and the Media’s Role

A notable part of the article focuses on how the media played into the “Great Con.” The piece references a link to a 2024 Pew Research Center survey (https://www.pewresearch.org/environment/2024/02/19/climate-change-attitudes-2024/) showing that 68% of U.S. adults believed climate change was a “significant threat.” Yet, the survey also found that 42% of respondents were “unsure” or “defiant” about the science—an attitude that aligns with the Trump‑era messaging.

Fortune points out that social media amplification was a key factor, citing a link to a 2024 BuzzFeed article on misinformation trends (https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/2024/05/01/climate-misinformation). The BuzzFeed piece lists several high‑profile influencers who echoed Trump’s climate skepticism, and the Fortune article stresses how these voices “reinforced a narrative that science is not settled.”

The Path Forward: What’s at Stake

The article concludes by stressing the stakes. If the “Great Con” continues, the U.S. risks missing its 2030 climate targets, and the global carbon budget could be exceeded by a wide margin. The piece calls for a “unified front” between policymakers, scientists, and corporations to dismantle the misinformation networks. It references a link to the United Nations Climate Action Summit 2025 (https://un.org/climate/2025) that underscores the need for international cooperation.

Final Takeaway

Fortune’s September 24, 2025 feature offers a sobering look at how a single political ideology can shape public understanding of climate science and influence corporate behavior. By weaving together data from scientific reports, corporate statements, regulatory history, and media analysis, the article demonstrates that the “Great Con‑Job” is more than a political gimmick—it’s a coordinated effort that has tangible effects on the planet.

The piece serves as a stark reminder that the battle over climate change is not just about emissions or policy; it’s also about the credibility of science, the power of corporate lobbying, and the narratives we choose to believe. For anyone interested in the intersection of politics, business, and environmental stewardship, the article is a must‑read—and a call to action.