President Donald Trump on Friday made a wild new claim about wind power as he renewed his attacks on renewable energy.
Trump complained that many of the components used in wind turbines are made in China, then suggested that China itself doesn’t actually use wind turbines.
“I have never seen a wind farm in China,” Trump declared. “Why is that? Somebody check that out.”
In reality, China is far and away the world’s leading producer of wind energy, with more than triple the current U.S. wind capacity.
Trump, however, has long had issues with renewable energy ― especially wind, which he has called “bullshit” and “a hoax,” a grudge he has held since a dispute over an offshore wind farm near one of his resorts.
Now, Trump might finally get his way as his “big beautiful bill” will wipe out tax credits for wind and solar power, potentially decimating the industry. The Rhodium Group, a research firm, estimates the bill will put a stop to between 57% and 72% of new solar and wind projects.
North America’s Building Trades Unions slammed the move as “the biggest job-killing bill in the history of this country” as those projects are cancelled.
“Critical infrastructure projects essential to that future are being sacrificed at the altar of ideology,” the organization said in a statement.
New York Times columnist Thomas L. Friedman said China is “laughing” at the United States as a result, writing:
“The Chinese simply can’t believe their luck: that at the dawn of the electricity-guzzling era of artificial intelligence, the U.S. president and his party have decided to engage in one of the greatest acts of strategic self-harm imaginable. They have passed a giant bill that, among other craziness, deliberately undermines America’s ability to generate electricity through renewables — solar, battery and wind power in particular.”
Since Trump said “somebody check that out” when railing against wind power, many people did exactly that ― and gave the president a fact-check:
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