Trump just took his hatred of windmills in a bizarre new direction: Noise-induced cancer

published 3 April 2019

At a National Republican Congressional Committee fundraiser dinner Tuesday, President Trump floated what appears to be a new conspiracy theory for him, involving windmills and cancer.

Trump has a long and well-documented hatred of wind power. But for the record, "wind turbines do not cause cancer," Jonathan Chait notes at New York. "Some people blame the noise for causing a variety of other health ailments, but these charges have zero scientific validity. Cancer is not caused by noises of any kind. A power source that does cause many health problems, including cancer, is coal, an extremely dirty fuel Trump loves and has attempted to bolster, with almost no success."

Trump is actually correct that wind turbines kill birds, though "at a lower rate than other energy sources," Chait adds. A much lower rate, in fact. Trump's ode to paranoia was pretty on the nose, though.

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It's true. You can watch his remarks about windmills at C-SPAN, or at the 42:14 mark below. Peter Weber

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.