Residents erupt as Michigan Democrats approve funding for Chinese-backed green energy project: 'I'm angry'

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Michigan residents criticize state lawmakers for backing Chinese battery plant proposal

Residents from across Michigan confronted state lawmakers Thursday over their decision to move forward with a funding package for an electric vehicle battery plant proposed by Chinese company Gotion. (Michigan State Senate)

Michigan residents blasted Democratic state lawmakers during a public hearing Thursday where public funding was later approved to facilitate the construction of a Chinese-backed project.

During the Michigan state Senate Appropriations Committee hearing, lawmakers led by Democratic state Sen. Sarah Anthony, the panel's chair, gave final approval of $175 million in taxpayer funding for Gotion — a subsidiary of the Hefei, China-based Gotion High-Tech — to build an electric vehicle (EV) battery plant in Big Rapids. The measure passed in a tight 10-9 vote with every committee Republican and three Democrats voting against it.

The funding was approved after a period in which members of the public were invited to deliver feedback about the project at the hearing. Nearly all the residents who spoke slammed the proposal and expressed concern about a company based in China developing a factory in their state.

"Why are we even considering — why would the county, the township, the state of Michigan even consider a Chinese-based company if, in fact, there is an American company willing to build this type of plant," Russ Jennings, a resident, said during the hearing.

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Michigan state Sen. Sarah Anthony, the chair of the Appropriations Committee, speaks during the hearing Thursday. (Michigan State Senate)

Marjorie Steele, a resident of Big Rapids, criticized the committee for rushing the vote on the funding and for scheduling the hearing with little notice.

"I'm angry. I'm angry that this vote was slipped into the agenda today with as little information as possible so that people like me wouldn't know it was happening," Steele said. "I'm angry that you, our elected officials, have ignored my community's pleas to table this vote until some small semblance of due diligence can be performed."

"I can promise you that we will not stop at the local level," she added. "We are tired of being abused and we are not alone. This is not just a Mecosta County issue. Townships and counties across the state are uniting, sharing resources, manpower and grassroots activism. Your votes today, senators, are lines drawn in the sand."

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Cheryl Vitito, another resident, said the project would serve as a part of the Chinese government's broader plan to "overthrow the United States without firing a shot."

"I think that any Chinese communist plant buying up 700 acres of Michigan land is a concern to all citizens throughout the state," she said. "This CCP-controlled company represents communism and is a threat to our way of life and our God-given and constitutional freedoms. We don't want the CCP here by way of the Gotion plant as they have no regard for the value and dignity of human life."

A Michigan resident speaks during the hearing Thursday, arguing the money Gotion earns from the project would "go home to China" and be used as a weapon. (Michigan State Senate)

"This company pledges allegiance to the Chinese Communist Party and should be determined as a threat to our national security," added resident Shirley Schaefer.

In October, Democratic Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced that Gotion would invest $2.4 billion to construct two 550,000 square-foot production plants along with other supporting facilities spanning 260 acres in northern Michigan. She applauded the proposal, saying it would shore up Michigan's status as the "global hub of mobility and electrification."

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However, Republican lawmakers and local leaders have scrutinized Gotion's proposal, pointing to its Chinese ownership and ties to the Chinese Communist Party. The corporate bylaws of Gotion High-Tech, whose California-based subsidiary Gotion proposed the Michigan plant, requires the company to "carry out Party activities in accordance with the Constitution of the Communist Party of China."

"I am gravely disappointed that our representatives are serving the demands of our governor over the request of our citizens. I can attest, however, that our community is now united in ways they would have never been before. They do not want this," Hannah Saez, the clerk of Big Rapids Township, said during the hearing.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said Gotion's plant would help make the state the "global hub of mobility and electrification." (Bill Pugliano/Getty Images)

"Thousands of Michiganders will be watching today," Saez continued. "I know you all receive daily emails and phone calls. I know you're under pressure. I know you've probably been coerced. I beg of you to do what is right here even if corruption is knocking at your door."

Kyle Luce, the supervisor of Barton Township, a jurisdiction near where the facility is proposed, said 85% of his residents polled were opposed to Gotion's project.

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"Our citizens are concerned with the timeframe that's going on here," Luce remarked. "The timing seems to be sped up exponentially to, in our opinion, try to seal the deal and get this done before people have a chance to speak out, residents have a chance to speak out. And individuals, the fine senators, are digging up information daily about the CCP involvement."

"We're very concerned as a small municipality in the of middle Michigan. We're primarily a farm community and we're concerned about our environment," he continued. "I'm here just to speak and ask you to either turn this down or table it until further investigation could be done."