Cruz's unsubstantiated claim is part of a yearslong effort by the fossil-fuel industry and its allies to figh…

Cruz's unsubstantiated claim is part of a yearslong effort by the fossil-fuel industry and its allies to fight lawsuits that state and local governments have filed against oil and gas companies, according to environmental advocates and Democratic lawmakers. The litigation alleges that corporations misled the public for decades about the dangers of burning fossil fuels, the primary cause of climate change. The lawsuits seek money to help communities cope with the risks and harms from global warming, including more extreme storms, floods and heat waves. For years, Republican lawmakers have probed the funding sources for America's environmental movement. That scrutiny has focused more recently on climate litigation as cases proliferated around the country. This summer, a group of Republican state attorneys general called for a federal law to protect energy companies from "activist-funded climate lawsuits."