No, Marjorie Taylor Greene, the government can’t control the weather

Georgia U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Republican who often traffics in conspiracy theories, appears to have lost her mind, according to people on the internet, who point to her bizarre assertion that the government can control the weather and that Democrats are aiming hurricanes at Republican areas. Greene’s claims, which she has broadcast across her X (formerly Twitter) account, have stirred up controversy amid ongoing relief efforts following Hurricanes Helene and Milton, devastating storms that hit the southeastern U.S. in recent weeks.

On Saturday, Greene tweeted, “Yes, they can control the weather. Here is Obama’s CIA Director John Brennan talking about it. Anyone who says they don’t, or makes fun of this, is lying to you.” Days later, she doubled down, writing, “Everyone keeps asking, ‘who is they?’ Well, some of them are listed on NOAA, as well as most of the ways weather can be modified, because they are required to report it to the Secretary of Commerce by the Weather Modification Act of 1972.” NOAA is the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Greene also cited various patents, some dating back to the 19th century, that she claims prove the government’s nefarious weather control practices. Poynter investigated these patents, concluding that none of them actually demonstrated the ability to control weather, let alone create devastating hurricanes like Helene and Milton.

Meteorologists and atmospheric science experts agree with that assessment. In a report by Poynter, James Fleming, an emeritus professor of science, technology, and society at Colby College, dismissed Greene’s references to patents, saying they are “silly, frivolous patents” that don’t have any practical application in weather control. Fleming has studied the history of weather modification efforts and emphasized that while humans have long dreamed of controlling the skies, modern technology does not allow them to create or manipulate storms.

Greene’s conspiracy theory taps into a long-standing fringe belief that weather can be weaponized. However, as experts explained, the patents Greene references involve early forms of cloud-seeding and other rain-enhancement technologies, which in no way have the capacity to generate or control hurricanes. Cloud-seeding, for example, involves releasing particles into clouds to encourage precipitation, but even this practice has limits. Paul Ullrich, a professor of regional climate modeling at the University of California, Davis, told Poynter, “The weather is incredibly chaotic, hence why it’s almost impossible to predict the weather more than two weeks in advance.”

Ullrich also pointed out the absurdity of controlling a hurricane, explaining that the energy required to generate or manipulate a hurricane is astronomical. Hurricanes create “200 times as much power as the whole electrical generating capacity of the planet,” he said, adding that any effort to change a hurricane’s course would require modifying global pressure and wind systems, a feat far beyond human capabilities.

Kristen Corbosiero, an atmospheric and environmental sciences professor at the University at Albany, echoed these points, telling Poynter, “All weather in our atmosphere is due to unequal heating of the Earth and the atmosphere’s (and ocean’s) attempt to balance out that heating.”

Greene’s statements about weather control fit a broader pattern of pushing bizarre conspiracy theories. She made headlines in the past for promoting the outlandish claim that devastating 2018 California wildfires were caused by “Jewish space lasers” — a baseless and anti-Semitic conspiracy theory that has been widely discredited but continues to follow her. In that case, Greene suggested that a space-based laser was used to intentionally start the fires for financial gain, implicating influential Jewish figures in the process.

Greene has continued to push false claims. On Monday, she shared a meme listing various “weather modification patents” and urged her followers to ask their government “if the weather is manipulated or controlled.” She also tied her conspiracies to broader political concerns, writing, “Did you ever give permission to them to do it? Are you paying for it? Of course, you are.”

Even Greene’s Republican colleagues have pushed back on her outlandish assertions. On Tuesday, North Carolina U.S. Rep. Chuck Edwards issued a statement debunking rumors circulating about Hurricane Helene, writing that “nobody can control the weather.” Edwards noted that while geoengineering technologies exist to mitigate some of the negative impacts of weather events, they cannot create or manipulate natural disasters.

The political fallout from Greene’s comments has spread far beyond social media. President Joe Biden also weighed in on Wednesday, denouncing Greene’s remarks during a briefing about Hurricane Milton. “It’s beyond ridiculous,” Biden said, calling the spread of misinformation harmful to disaster recovery efforts. “It’s gotta stop.”

U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg also expressed outrage over the harmful impact of such conspiracy theories. During an appearance on MSNBC Thursday, Buttigieg emphasized that misleading information about government relief efforts undermines trust at a time when people’s lives are at stake. “This is not an academic exercise,” he said. “This is a life-and-death response operation.”

Buttigieg condemned the spread of disinformation, warning that it can delay or disrupt access to much-needed aid for people in disaster areas. “Whether it’s malicious, politically motivated, or just lazy, there is no excuse for circulating false information at a time like this,” he said.