American Wind Power Made In China? Let's Create Jobs Here

 
Our stimulus money could end up being used to send green jobs to China. With unemployment in America just having surpassed 10 percent, that is economic malpractice.

A planned $1.5 billion dollar Texas wind farm—seeking financing with U.S. stimulus money—will create only 30 permanent jobs here, but 2,000 jobs in China manufacturing wind turbines, according to a Wall Street Journal story.

New York Sen. Chuck Schumer is pressing Energy Secretary Steven Chu to take action. On November 5, he sent Dr. Chu a letter saying, "I urge you to reject any request for stimulus money unless the high‐value components, including the wind turbines, are manufactured in the United States."

It is imperative for our economy to support Schumer and call on the Energy Department to direct American stimulus money towards creating American green jobs.

This is about more than one pending project. Sen. Schumer notes: "... 84 percent of the $1.05 billion in clean‐energy grants distributed by the U.S. government since September 1 have gone to foreign wind companies. ... Our U.S. wind industry ... is fully capable of providing [wind turbines] and other high‐value components..."

China has every right to use its funds to stimulate its own green economy, and thankfully it is. But it makes no sense to use American stimulus money to create jobs overseas when we can do the job and we've lost millions of jobs in the last two years.

We have the technology, the skills, and the labor to build a sustainable clean energy economy. But we need robust public investment and a commitment to American manufacturing.

We've spent billions bailing out Wall Street bankers. It is inconceivable that we will now spend millions to subsidize new energy jobs in China.

It's time for a strategy to invest in jobs at home, and to lead the green industrial revolution. We can have it, if we demand it. Click here to tell Energy Secretary Chu: American wind power should not be "Made In China." Don't offshore green jobs with our tax dollars.