Trump delivers Earth Day message — and liberals aren’t happy

President Donald Trump delivered a common-sense appeal on Earth Day, telling his followers on Twitter on Saturday afternoon, “Today on Earth Day, we celebrate our beautiful forests, lakes and land. We stand committed to preserving the natural beauty of our nation.”

Today on Earth Day, we celebrate our beautiful forests, lakes and land. We stand committed to preserving the natural beauty of our nation.

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 22, 2017

Three hours later, Trump added, “I am committed to keeping our air and water clean but always remember that economic growth enhances environmental protection. Jobs matter!”

I am committed to keeping our air and water clean but always remember that economic growth enhances environmental protection. Jobs matter!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 22, 2017

Trump’s Earth Day messages come as thousands of protesters across the country have taken to the streets to “defend” science against what they claim are anti-science policies and proposals from the White House.

Critics of Trump’s energy policies seized on the opportunity to criticize the president for his Earth Day message.

Roland Scahill from New York wrote, “If you could, you would transform every inch of nature into a Trump golf course. You have no love or admiration for nature.”

@realDonaldTrump If you could, you would transform every inch of nature into a Trump golf course. You have no love or admiration for nature.

— Roland Scahill (@rolandscahill) April 22, 2017

Public radio show host Al Letson wrote, “How will you preserve the natural beauty of the land, if you dismantle the @EPA?”

@realDonaldTrump How will you preserve the natural beauty of the land, if you dismantle the @EPA?

— Al Letson (@Al_Letson) April 22, 2017

Nathan Bernard from Brooklyn, New York, replied on Twitter, “You say, ‘Happy #EarthDay’ as you prepare to literally blow up the entire earth.”

@realDonaldTrump You say, "Happy #EarthDay" as you prepare to literally blow up the entire earth. pic.twitter.com/5PKw1ing2R

— Nathan Bernard (@nathanTbernard) April 22, 2017

“Then start taking action on global warming and quit calling it ‘fake news,’” said self-described “feminist” and “human rights activist” Cole Ledford to Trump.

@realDonaldTrump Then start taking action on global warming and quit calling it "fake news"

— Cole Ledford (@ColeLedford11) April 22, 2017

One of the biggest complaints from protesters is Trump has proposed cutting $54 billion from numerous federal government agencies, including a cut to the Environmental Protection Agency that tops 30 percent.

Trump has also issued climate- and energy-related executive orders, the most substantial of which was signed at the end of March. In that order, which is titled “Promoting Energy Independence and Economic Growth,” Trump pulled back from the Obama-era Clean Power Plan and lifted a 14-month moratorium on new coal leases issued to developers seeking to mine on federal lands.

According to a report by Fox News, the order also “chips away at other regulations, including scrapping language on the ‘social cost’ of greenhouse gases. It initiates a review of efforts to reduce the emission of methane in oil and natural gas production as well as a Bureau of Land Management hydraulic fracturing rule, to determine whether those reflect the president’s policy priorities. It also rescinds Obama-era executive orders and memoranda, including one that addressed climate change and national security and one that sought to prepare the country for the impacts of climate change.”

Trump maintains that his policies will both protect the environment and help spur job growth.

“We’re going to have safety, we’re going to have clean water, we’re going to have clean air, but so many [regulations] are unnecessary, so many are job-killing,” Trump said in March.