Observationally, self-serving denial seems to go through steps:
1. It's not happening.
2. Ok, it is happening, but it's not our fault.
3. Ok, it is our fault, but it's too hard to be worth addressing right now.
4. Ok, it would have been worth addressing at the time, but it's too late so we should learn to live with it.
These apply generally across the political spectrum, but specifically with respect to climate change, if people are shifting from step 1 to step 2 and even step 3 as per the article I suppose that is a form of progress in the sense that they are moving closer to reality. Having said that, no step requires that anyone take action or make sacrifices so practically it doesn't matter which step they're on.