After the Obama administration’s release of a recent study saying that the effects of climate change were already being felt, Mr. Rubio said he disagreed with scientists that humans were having an effect on the “always evolving” climate.

“I do not believe that human activity is causing these dramatic changes to our climate the way these scientists are portraying it,” he said. “And I do not believe that the laws that they propose we pass will do anything about it, except it will destroy our economy.”