White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest.

WASHINGTON — According to the Washington Times, White House press secretary Josh Earnest told reporters Americans no longer face the same threat of attack that they did prior to Sept. 11, 2001, crediting the administration’s efforts to degrade organizations such as al Qaeda.

Earnest said climate change was turning out to be a far greater threat for everyday Americans.

He said there were many more people on an annual basis who had to confront the direct impact on their lives of climate change, or on the spread of a disease, than on terrorism.

He added that more people were directly affected by those things than by terrorism. 

“There are many more people on an annual basis who have to confront … the direct impact on their lives of climate change or on the spread of a disease than on terrorism,” Earnest told reporters. 

“The point that the president is making is that when you’re talking about the direct daily impact of these kinds of challenges on the daily lives of Americans, particularly Americans living in this country … more people are directly affected by those things than by terrorism,” Earnest said. 

The administration also highlighted climate change as a security threat at the end of last week with the release of its latest national security strategy, a foreign policy blueprint that put climate change on par with such risks as weapons of mass destruction, the outbreak and spread of infectious disease and terrorist attack.