Michigan lawmakers: Gotion's EV subsidy a national security concern

Two Michigan Republican lawmakers asked the Michigan Economic Development Corp. to stop subsidizing Gotion’s electric vehicle plant.

The letter cites recent national security concerns from current and former federal officials, asking the state to recoup any funds distributed thus far.

Michigan Republican Sens. Jonathan Lindsey, of Allen, and Lana Theis, of Brighton, sent the letter asking 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,” Lindsey said in a statement. “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 it has “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 said the Gotion battery plant could be a threat to American security.

The MEDC hasn’t yet responded to a request for comment.

Michigan officials have promised $715 million to the Gotion plant, including a $125 million grant for a local job creation requirement; a 30-year Renaissance Zone to Mecosta County valued at $540 million; and a $50 million Strategic Site Readiness Program performance-based grant.

“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,” Theis, a Brighton Republican said in a statement. “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.”