Washingotn Gov. Jay Inslee, who is focusing his campaign on climate change to distinguish himself from the still-growing Democratic field, said that Washington has a $6 billion wind turbine industry. | Ted S. Warren/AP Photo 2020 Elections Jay Inslee calls Trump's wind energy doubts 'moronic'

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee on Monday called President Trump's claims about potential negative impacts of the widespread adoption of wind energy "moronic," labeling the president a "narrow-minded thinker."

"When Donald Trump said we're not going to have toasters and TVs if we have wind power, that's just simply moronic, is the best way I can say it," Inslee, who announced last week that he would run for president, said during an interview with ABC's "The View."


Trump has long expressed skepticism about climate change despite significant scientific evidence that it exists and is caused largely by human activity. The president has previously suggested, without evidence, that the concept of climate change is a hoax invented by the Chinese government to give itself an economic advantage over the U.S.

The president has also championed the use of traditional fossil fuels, the burning of which is a major factor in climate change, and has expressed skepticism about alternative energy sources. Addressing the Conservative Political Action Conference, Trump joked that once "the wind stops blowing, that's the end of your electric," while mocking the Green New Deal proposal backed by many Democrats in Congress.

"Darling, is the wind blowing today? I'd like to watch television, darling," Trump joked.

Inslee, who is focusing his campaign on climate change to distinguish himself from the still-growing Democratic field, said that Washington has a $6 billion wind turbine industry. The state requires requires large utilities to obtain 15 percent of their electricity from renewable resources by 2020, which includes solar and wind energy.

"When I turn on 'The View' in the morning, it always comes on," Inslee quipped. "It works really, really well."

Inslee added that Trump needs to begin understanding that a clean energy economy is possible.

"He is just such a pessimist and a narrow-minded thinker," he said. "He needs to get with the rest of Americans that understand that a country that sent a man to the moon can develop a clean energy economy. That's what we can do. I fundamentally believe it."