Using exclusively archival materials, The White House Effect tells the dramatic origin story of the climate crisis and reveals how politics overtook science during the George H. W. Bush administration. Bush, who made protecting the environment a key issue in his 1988 campaign, finds himself caught in the middle with his chief of staff John Sununu and industry power brokers on one side and EPA chief Bill Reilly and the scientists on the other. As the world prepares for the Earth Summit in Rio, Bush faces mounting pressure to make a decision that will change the course of history. The film tells a harrowing political story about the consequences of presidential power and its impact on how we deal with the climate crisis today.
