Donald Trump has once again repeated misleading claims about energy powered by wind turbines during an interview with Fox News.
The US president has long claimed renewable energy sources like wind are not effective and incapable of consistent output, due to issues like a lack of ever-constant wind and sunlight.
He was at it again on Wednesday night, telling conservative host Sean Hannity, “You look at the fact that we would have been powered by wind, which wouldn’t have worked by the way because it only blows sometimes and lots of problems come about.”
The president was defending himself against accusations that he has not been tough enough on Russia when he brought up wind turbines. “Nobody has been tougher, nobody, on Russia than me,” he began.
“It's what we have done with energy and oil and gas,” he continued. “That's all competition from, for Russia. You look at the Ukraine. You look at so many different levels. You look at our military.”
It was just a throwaway line, but reflects a years-long theme the president has espoused about wind energy.
He criticised wind turbines again last year during a fundraising event in which he wrongly called them “windmills” while claiming “coal is indestructible.”
“You know, the windmills [makes a shooting gun noise]. That's the end of that one. If the birds don't kill it first,” he said at the time.
He then mocked the Green New Deal at this year’s Conservative Political Action Conference, also known as CPAC, in which he derided wind turbines and Democratic efforts pushing for renewable energy.
“I think the New Green Deal or whatever the hell they call it — the Green New Deal — I encourage it,” he said mockingly. “I think it’s really something that they should promote. They should work hard on it. ... No planes, no energy. When the wind stops blowing that’s the end of your electric.”
“Let’s hurry up, darling,” Mr Trump continued. “Is the wind blowing today? I’d like to watch television, darling.”
Like other renewable energy sources, wind turbines are capable of storing and preserving produced energy.
Federal loans are currently providing researchers money to build utility-scale storage units for renewable energy sources, including wind ands solar.
