Why Does Trump Think Biden Wants To Shrink Everybody’s Windows?

Topline

President Donald Trump insisted Thursday night during the final presidential debate that Democratic opponent Joe Biden is pining to knock down buildings and shrink their windows, a bizarre and inaccurate riff on Biden’s climate plan that has quickly turned into one of Trump’s go-to attack lines.

Key Facts

Crucial Quote

“They want to take buildings down because they want to make bigger windows into smaller windows,” Trump said Thursday night. “As far as they’re concerned, if you had no window, it would be a lovely thing.”

Key Background

Trump has frequently attempted to tie Biden to the Green New Deal, a wide-ranging proposal involving renewable energy projects, infrastructure upgrades and economic stimulus. In its current form, the Green New Deal is a nonbinding statement rather than a concrete policy, so it’s difficult to assess its fiscal or economic impact, but Biden’s plan tends to be far narrower than most of the ideas floated by Green New Deal supporters. Either way, windows are probably safe from Biden and congressional Democrats’ wrath.

Tangent

Trump also claimed Biden’s climate plan would cost $100 trillion. This figure appears to be lifted from a conservative think tank’s estimate for the cost of the Green New Deal, though supporters of the Green New Deal have disputed that figure. Biden says his plan would cost far less.

Further Reading

Trump Keeps Talking About ‘Tiny Windows,’ And No One Knows What He Means (Curbed)

Trump ‘no windows’ comment draws fire (EnergyNow)