Granholm: Biden wants to take advantage of ‘economic opportunity’ in fighting climate change

Former Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm (D), President-elect Joe Biden’s nominee for Energy secretary, said on Sunday that Biden is hoping to take advantage of the “economic opportunity” of combating climate change.

“I am so excited about this George because this combating climate change is such an economic opportunity for this country there’s going to be trillions of dollars spent globally on combating climate change by countries around the world,” said Granholm on ABC’s “This Week.”

“Every country is going to be buying solar panels and they’re going to be buying wind turbines and they’re going to be buying electric vehicles and the batteries and they’re going to upgrade their electric grids,” Granholm said.

“We could be producing that material, those products here in the United States, and stamping the Made in America and exporting them around the country. We need to be the leader, rather than passive bystanders or otherwise we’re going to allow other countries like China and others who are fighting to be able to corner this market,” she added.

Jennifer Granholm, Biden’s nominee for Energy Secretary, says the U.S. needs to be “the leader” on combating climate change as opposed to a “passive bystander,” adding that Biden is focused on “taking advantage of the economic opportunity for our people.” https://t.co/FZgT9kbzin pic.twitter.com/zHW4C5Wr1y

— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) December 20, 2020

According to Granholm, Biden’s focus for the Energy Department is “taking advantage of the economic opportunity” in building products that help to combat climate change.

News of Granholm’s nomination was welcomed by climate activists, with Greenpeace USA Senior Climate Campaigner Lisa Ramsden saying they were “glad that President-elect Biden is listening to the thousands of climate justice activists who opposed fossil fuel representatives like Ernest Moniz for Secretary of Energy.”

Moniz, a former Energy secretary during the Obama administration, has faced scrutiny for his ties to the fossil fuel industry.