Trump Brings Back Neil Jacobs, Ex-NOAA Chief Linked to 'Sharpiegate'

It's Groundhog Day all over again ...

“You want a prediction about the weather, you're asking the wrong Phil. I'll give you a winter prediction: It's gonna be cold, it's gonna be grey, and it's gonna last you for the rest of your life.” — Phil Connors

The Trump administration announced this week—the same week Punxsutawney Phil predicted six more weeks of winter—that Neil Jacobs, the former head of NOAA, would once again lead the agency.

Andrew Freedman, senior climate reporter for Axios, asked me to weigh in on the challenges facing Jacobs and NOAA given the Trump backdrop.

Below is my response:

What they're saying: "While 'climate' may become as toxic as DEI, weather tech applications will be where the action will be," with new partnership opportunities with the private sector, Paul Walsh, an expert on the economic impact of weather on consumers and industry, told Axios.

• Walsh — founder and managing director of G2 Weather Intelligence — also pointed out that significant brain drain is possible within NOAA, particularly among…