Wherever you live, you probably have a trusted meteorologist you rely on when extreme weather hits. That’s especially true in parts of the country prone to hurricanes, tornadoes, snowstorms, heat waves, floods, and other severe weather. And For some folks in Florida, that meteorologist is award-winning John Morales.
Morales went viral last year for his plain-spoken warnings and has tried to continue spreading science, despite all the misinformation about climate and weather.
In June of 2025, Morales began warning his viewers that he was concerned he could no longer accurately predict for them, especially when it came to the hurricanes Floridians fear, because “recent cuts to the National Weather Service could leave television forecasters like him ‘flying blind’ this hurricane season. ‘We may not exactly know how strong a hurricane is before it reaches the coastline,’” he told his viewers.
John’s plea at the time caught my attention. He was one of the people who influenced my decision to write this column back then: Don’t Lose Sight Of What Matters. DOGE may now be a thing of the past, but we continue to deal with its legacy. The problems John identified are among them. He joins us tonight to help us understand where things stand today.
John’s commitment to preaching science in the era of disinformation about climate change makes him a treasure. The Friday night Five Questions format gives us the opportunity to dig into an issue like this that isn’t getting the coverage it deserves because it’s a sustained slow burn rather than a flashy headline. That is, until a catastrophic weather event hits and exposes the consequences of climate change and cuts to the government programs that keep us informed about the weather.
“Five Questions” is a Friday feature for paid subscribers, built around the conversations that don’t fit into a news cycle driven by headlines and hot takes. It’s a chance to spend time with the people shaping the law, politics, and democracy—and to ask the questions that matter most, not just the ones everyone else is asking. Keeping the daily legal analysis free has always been important to me, and it will stay that way. These Friday conversations give me a chance to thank paid subscribers for their help ensuring that Civil Discourse remains available to everyone who wants to follow the law beyond the day’s headlines. Whether you’re a paid subscriber or a free subscriber, I’m grateful you’re here.
