Former President Donald Trump expressed vehement opposition to wind power during a rally in Durham, New Hampshire, elaborating on his unfounded claims about the supposed negative impacts of wind energy. Trump’s anti-wind sentiments have become recurring themes at his rallies, featuring baseless assertions ranging from cancer-causing noise to claims of harm to mammals and birds.
In a particularly impassioned moment during the rally, Trump claimed that wind power was causing suffering to mammals and birds and alleged that the sight under a windmill resembled a “bird cemetery.” Without providing any evidence, he argued that wind turbines are responsible for killing birds and negatively affecting wildlife. Trump also made inaccurate statements about the lifespan of wind turbine blades and asserted that wind energy is the most expensive form of energy.
Continuing his critique, Trump brought up solar energy, criticizing its perceived inefficiency and claiming that it takes up vast areas of the desert. Despite expressing a liking for the concept of solar energy, he argued that it is not powerful enough to meet the energy demands of the country, particularly for firing up factories.
Trump then contrasted the United States’ approach to energy with that of China, emphasizing China’s construction of coal-fired plants at a rapid pace. He suggested that the U.S. was making a mistake by investing in wind and solar energy while China continued to prioritize coal.
LET’S ASSUME YOU’RE A BIG BELIEVER IN THIS. THEY SEND BIG FUMES. AND SO YOU ADD IT ALL UP AND IT’S TERRIBLE. YOU CAN’T GET RID OF THE BLADES. THEY ONLY LAST TEN YEARS. THE ENERGY IS THE MOST EXPENSIVE ENERGY YOU CAN DO.
THEY KILL ALL OUR BIRDS. IF YOU WANT TO SEE A BIRD CEMETERY, GO UNDER A WINDMILL SOME TIME, YOU’LL SEE BIRDS LIKE YOU NEVER SAW! IT’S A VERY, IF YOU LOVE BIRDS, YOU’LL START TO WEEP!
BUT IT’S IT’S JUST THE CRAZIEST THING. THEY RUIN OUR PLANES AND FIELDS. THEY’RE KILLING OUR WHALES. YOU KNOW, THE WHALES ARE COMING IN. I THINK WE HAD ONE WHALE COME IN IN 50 YEARS. THIS YEAR WE HAD LIKE 12.
IT’S IT’S A TERRIBLE THING THEY’RE DOING TO OUR COUNTRY AND THEY’RE DOING IT UNDER THE AUSPICES AND BASIS OF WE HAVE TO MAINTAIN OUR CLIE–
SO HERE’S THE PROBLEM. CHINA IS RIGHT NOW BUILDING 50 COAL FIRED PLANTS. OKAY, BIG PLANTS, BIG, BIGGER THAN ANYTHING WE HAVE. 50 OF THEM. THEY’RE BUILDING ON AVERAGE ONE A WEEK.
AND NOW I UNDERSTAND THE AVERAGE IS GOING TO CLOSE IN TWO WEEKS. WE’RE GETTING RID OF ALL OF OUR STUFF FOR WIND.
WIND? HERE COMES THE WIND. OH, IT’S NOT POWERFUL ENOUGH TO FIRE UP OUR FACTORIES. SOLAR. YOU EVER SEE A SOLAR ARRAY? THEY TAKE UP AREAS OF THE DESERT. THEY MIGHT AS WELL TAKE THE WHOLE DAMN DESERT, YOU KNOW.
AND I LIKE THE CONCEPT OF SOLAR, BUT IT’S NOT POWERFUL. LIKE WHAT? WE NEED TO FIRE UP OUR FACTORIES. WE CAN’T DO IT. LET’S PUT IT THIS WAY. IT’S NOT. IT’S NOT WORKING. YOU CAN HAVE A SOLAR, YOU CAN HAVE A LITTLE. YOU COULD EVEN HAVE SOME WIND IF YOU WANT IT.
BUT WIND IS 42 TIMES MORE EXPENSIVE THAN NATURAL GAS. THINK OF IT, 42. AND WE HAVE MORE, I CALL IT WHAT DO I CALL IT, LIQUID GOLD? LIQUID GOLD. BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL LIQUID GOLD.
Concluding his remarks, Trump referred to natural gas as “liquid gold” and asserted that wind energy is 42 times more expensive than natural gas. The former president’s comments highlight his persistent skepticism toward renewable energy sources, particularly wind and solar power, despite the global push for cleaner and more sustainable alternatives.