«The Trump administration is continuing to pursue its pledge to prioritize American energy independence and SCALE BACK THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT'S PLANS TO UNDERSTAND and prevent climate change.»
Caps mine for emphasis.
The clarity of the highlighted phrasing is stark. Even if you didn't have a massive global consensus of scientists telling you specifically what was up with the climate, and instead you only knew that weather was being pretty wonky in recent years—and really I think anyone on the street knows that—why on earth would you go the path of seeking LESSENED UNDERSTANDING??