Donald Trump Says Biden Wants to 'Get Rid of Air Conditioning' for American Seniors

© Joe Raedle/Getty President Donald Trump claimed on Friday that Joe Biden's energy policy proposals could harm U.S. senior citizens.

President Donald Trump said during a campaign event at retirement community The Villages in Florida on Friday that Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden's energy plans would take away air conditioning from senior citizens.

During a discussion of energy during Thursday's final presidential debate, Biden said that his administration would "transition" away from the oil industry and replace it with renewable energy resources. Trump, who has rolled back environmental regulations, fired back at Biden by saying he would destroy the oil industry.

At Friday's afternoon campaign event, Trump said Biden's proposed move away from fossil fuels "would mean America's seniors have no air conditioning during the summer, no heat during the winter and no electricity during peak hours. It's true."

Trump said Biden's comment about the fossil fuel industry "could be one of the worst mistakes made in presidential debate history."

Biden said during the debate that his administration would redirect the U.S. away from the use of fossil fuels "because the oil industry pollutes significantly."

"It has to be replaced by renewable energy over time, over time," Biden said, "and I'd stop giving to the oil industry—I'd stop giving them federal subsidies."

Trump called Biden's remark a "big statement," adding that Biden was "going to destroy the oil industry."

Newsweek reached out to the Biden campaign for comment.

Biden attempted to clarify his remarks to reporters after the debate. "We're not getting rid of fossil fuels," Biden said. "We're getting rid of the subsidies of fossil fuels but we're not getting rid of fossil fuels for a long time."

Trump has alleged that Biden has flip-flopped on his policies on fracking, a method for extracting oil and natural gas from the ground. After the debate, the Trump campaign released a video showing Biden and his Democratic running mate, Senator Kamala Harris, purportedly supporting fracking during public comments. Posted on Trump's Twitter feed, the video has received over 12 million views.

Biden's published energy policies do not mention banning fracking outright but do call for an end to new fracking operations on federally-owned land.

Biden's comments could have a negative effect on voters in states, such as Pennsylvania, that rely on the fossil fuel industry for jobs. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, Pennsylvania produces the second-greatest amount of total energy in the U.S., second only to Texas. Trump's administration has rolled back environmental regulations making it easier for companies to construct pipelines for oil and natural gas.

Final Presidential Debate 2020: Best Trump-Biden Reactions, Jokes And Memes

Newsweek See more videos

SHARE

SHARE

TWEET

SHARE

EMAIL

What to watch next

• 

  Goya CEO under fire for false Trump election claims

  
  CNN
• 

  Myanmar Court Charges Suu Kyi With Incitement Amid Protests

  
  Bloomberg
• 

  Coming up on Tuesday, Mar. 2 edition of 'Special Report'

  
  FOX News
• 

  New York AG to start independent Cuomo sexual harassment investigation

  
  FOX News
• 

  Public Chicago elementary schools reopen with new Covid precautions

  
  NBC News
• 

  Republican lawmaker reacts to being on Trump's 'enemies list'

  
  CNN
• 

  Biden meets with Mexico president: We are ‘stronger when we stand together’

  
  NBC News
• 

  Haley flip flops on Trump, praising his 'strong speech'

  
  CNN
• 

  CNN10 - 3/2/21

  
  CNN
• 

  Senate confirms Education Secretary Miguel Cardona

  
  CBS News
• 

  Donald Trump wants to split the Republican Party based on who is loyal to him

  
  CNBC
• 

  Joy Reid: The GOP is using 'The Big Lie' to push new voting restrictions

  
  MSNBC
• 

  Sean Hannity: Biden's performance as president becoming 'worrisome'

  
  FOX News

• Police find many MAGA fans don't think 'Blue Lives Matter'

  
  MSNBC
• 

  Stacey Abrams calls GOP efforts to restrict voting ‘new Jim Crow era laws’

  
  MSNBC
• 

  Los Angeles County sees decline in virus case rates

  
  Associated Press

Click to expand

Replay Video

• Goya CEO under fire for false Trump election claims The chief executive officer of Goya Foods, Robert Unanue, made a series of false claims about the 2020 election at the Conservative Political Action Conference. CNN
• Myanmar Court Charges Suu Kyi With Incitement Amid Protests Mar.01 -- A court in Myanmar has brought further charges against Aung San Suu Kyi. The charges come as the country saw its deadliest day yet of protests since the military coup on Feb. 1. Bloomberg’s Philip Heijmans reports on “Bloomberg Daybreak: Asia.” Bloomberg
• Coming up on Tuesday, Mar. 2 edition of 'Special Report' Bret Baier gives you a sneak peek of the next show. FOX News

UP NEXT

Biden is expected to campaign in Pennsylvania on Saturday. According to a Thursday announcement from Biden's campaign, the topics of discussion are expected to include "building back the economy better for working families."

Start your unlimited Newsweek trial