Nikki Haley talks energy, china during Moncks Corner town hall

MONCKS CORNER, S.C. (WCBD) – Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley held a town hall meeting inside the work bays at Berkeley Electric Cooperative on Monday afternoon.

It was just one of several stops the former South Carolina governor is making across the state as she campaigns for the GOP nomination.

Haley answered questions from the CEOs of Berkeley Electric, Santee Cooper, and the Central Electric Cooperative during the afternoon event.

The CEO of Santee Cooper told Haley they hope to increase more green energy options, but noted that if not done correctly, it could mean higher electric bills for consumers.

“The problem is there’s a disconnect from DC to what’s happening here on the ground,” said Haley. “They want to talk about clean energy – we all want clean energy. We all want a good environment. We all want clean air, clean water. That’s not debatable. The problem is, what the Biden Administration is doing — and I had to sue the EPA under the Obama Administration — is they are picking winners and losers. They’re picking what kind of energy they think is the best for Americans.”

Haley also touted a recent trip to the U.S. southern border where she said border patrol officers claimed they were not being allowed to do their job.

She said that she would change that and discussed how China steals hundreds of billions of dollars in intellectual property from the United States each year, and that the Chinese military would have access to Americans’ data through tech companies that operate in China.