"Pope Francis' scheduled address to a joint session of Congress this fall could put Republican lawmakers who reject a human role in global warming in the hot seat.

The timing of his appearance suggests the pontiff might have global warming on his mind.

Francis' Sept. 24 visit to Capitol Hill will be bookended by the expected release this spring of an encyclical, or papal letter, on global warming and the high-stakes U.N. climate talks in Paris at year's end.

Andy Carr, the director of Georgetown University's Initiative on Catholic Social Thought and Public Life, said the pope's visit could be a bipartisan case of "careful what you wish for.""

Jean Chemnick reports for Greenwire February 16, 2015. [2]

SEE ALSO:

"Verbal Warming: Labels in the Climate Debate" (New York Times) [3]

"72 Percent of Republican Senators Are Climate Deniers" (Mother Jones) [4]

"The Anti-Science Climate Denier Caucus: 114th Congress Edition" (Climate Progress) [5]

"Hot Seat: How Will 2016 Campaign Press Handle GOP Climate Deniers?" (Media Matters) [6]