Watch: Michigan Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist Says Michigan Democrats Want to Fix the ‘Climate Crisis’ and ‘Close More Coal Plants’

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s running mate and lieutenant governor, Garlin Gilchrist, told a weekend campaign rally state Democrats want to “strengthen” their state’s “response to the climate crisis” and “close more coal plants.”

Using the event at the University of Michigan with Whitmer, who’s in a neck-to-neck race of her own, Gilchrist sought to persuade people to get out and vote and said, “I want all of us to be proud in the role we played in this victory that lays a foundation in Michigan’s future.”

“We will be the people that left our state better than we found it because we put in the work in 2022,” he added before listing all of the different agenda items he claims Democrats want to do if they are to get a majority in the state House and Senate.

“When we get that majority, we’re gonna pass meaningful gun violence prevention legislation,” Gilchrist stated. “We’re gonna invest more in our schools. We’re gonna strengthen our state’s response to the climate crisis. We’re gonna close more coal plants. We’re gonna protect choice. We’re gonna protect LGBT rights.”

The lieutenant governor — who claims he wants to make his state a better place — ultimately stated he intends to wipe out an industry that provided the largest share of electricity net generation (at 32 percent) for his state in 2021.

“It’s shameful and unacceptable that Gretchen Whitmer and Garlin Gilchrest want to make energy more expensive for hard-working Michiganders already paying more for everything thanks to their policies,” MIGOP Deputy Chief of Staff & Communications Director Gustavo Portela told Breitbart News.

“They simply do not care about lending hard-working families struggling because of their policies a hand and instead prefer to punish them more. We can stop this nightmare by electing Tudor Dixon as our next Governor this Tuesday.”

Additionally, the lieutenant governor’s remarks came as President Joe Biden revealed his aspirations to shut down coal-fired power plants during a speech in San Diego, California.

“We’re going to be shutting these plants down all across America and having wind and solar,” Biden said when speaking about refitting coal plants by using the same transmission lines to generate electricity from wind and solar.

Biden also claimed coal-powered plants were unreliable by adding, “No one is building new coal plants because they can’t rely on it, even if they have all the coal guaranteed for the rest of their existence of the plant. So it’s going to become a wind generation.”

The next day after his remarks, Biden’s staff ended up issuing a “non-apology” about his comments on wanting to shut down coal power plants, claiming his words were “twisted to suggest a meaning that was not intended.”

“The President’s remarks yesterday have been twisted to suggest a meaning that was not intended; he regrets it if anyone hearing these remarks took offense,” Karine Jean-Pierre, the Biden White House press secretary, said in part of a statement used to try and excuse the president’s comments.

Jacob Bliss is a reporter for Breitbart News. Write to him at jbliss@breitbart.com or follow him on Twitter @JacobMBliss.