LANSING, Mich. — Sens. Jonathan Lindsey and Lana Theis penned a letter to Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) Director Quentin Messer requesting the state suspend any payments to the Gotion battery plant in light of recent national security concerns from current and former federal officials. The letter also asks that the state recoup any funds distributed thus far.
“National security experts from both sides of the aisle have sounded the alarm about China’s attempts to infiltrate and compromise our safety through industrial espionage,” said Lindsey, R-Allen. “Yet, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer continues to ignore their warnings and further place our state and nation at risk — while using taxpayer dollars to do so.”
Last week, President Joe Biden’s CIA Director William Burns labeled China as the United States’ biggest long-term threat, saying they have “the intent to reshape the international order and the economic, diplomatic, military, and technological power to do so.”
In congressional testimony last month, FBI Director Christopher Wray again warned of the security threat posed by China, saying, “they target our freedoms, reaching inside our borders, across America, to silence, coerce, and threaten our citizens and residents.”
Former Obama administration CIA Director and Defense Secretary Leon Panetta echoed these concerns, directly citing the Gotion battery plant as a threat to American security. Panetta warned Congress that plans to build a factory in Michigan could expose the country to espionage and that it is unwise to give Gotion any federal, state or local tax incentives.
“The Whitmer administration has irresponsibly ignored concerns from local residents and calls from a bipartisan group of state and federal officials about the grave dangers this project poses,” said Theis, R-Brighton. “I don’t know how many more warnings the governor and MEDC officials need or who will finally get their attention. The position they are putting our state in is downright dangerous and we need to discard the project and recoup any funds meant for its development.
“Using taxpayer funds to invite foreign adversaries in the name of partisan green energy initiatives is reprehensible and cannot continue.”
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Editor’s note: A copy of the letter can be found attached to this email.