Global Courant 2023-04-29 05:04:45
Republicans in the House of Representatives gathered on Friday to condemn President Biden’s proposed new rule on vehicle emissions, which they say is another step toward the administration’s “radical” goal of requiring that half of all new vehicles must be fully electric by 2030.
Under the proposed rule announced by the government earlier this month, automakers would need to deliver a massive 56% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions in 2032 vehicles compared to 2026 models, likely forcing companies to adopt electric alternatives more quickly. to produce.
In a letter to the White House on Friday, 33 House Republicans led by Rep. Keith Self, R-Texas, that the new rule will have “devastating consequences for manufacturers and consumers” if implemented, and likely America’s reliance on China’s stronghold in the electric vehicle (EV) battery industry.
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“The rule ignores how EV batteries are sourced. Batteries are made using precious rare-earth elements such as lithium, cobalt and graphite. Manufacturers will struggle to source these minerals in a timely manner,” the letter said.
“In addition, many of these minerals are imported from Communist China, which produces 70% of the world’s EV batteries. Just as our major power competition with China is flaring up, your rule would have the practical effect of supporting – and deepening – our dependence of – China’s huge EV industry,” it said.
The letter expressed concern that the U.S. power grid was not ready to run half of all cars on full electric, arguing that more charging stations and network upgrades would be needed upfront. It also argued that EV batteries posed their own environmental hazards by “exacerbating water pollution and contributing to toxic waste”, among other negative impacts on consumers.
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President Joe Biden makes his inauguration on November 17, 2021, at General Motors’ Factory ZERO assembly plant in Detroit, Michigan. (Nic Antaya/Getty Images)
It then called on the government to answer how it planned to promote the materials needed for EV batteries without increasing reliance on China, what it had learned from the US chip shortage, if it had considered the negative effects that the proposed rule could have on the automotive market, what it would say to consumers who don’t want to drive an EV, and what evidence it had to show that the power grid could currently support such an increase in EVs.
In a statement shared after the group’s letter to Biden, Self described what he saw as a direct line between the administration’s proposed new administration and American freedom itself.
“Climate change extremism has served as a pretext for unrestricted encroachments on American freedom. The Biden administration’s latest proposal to curb emissions standards hypocritically ignores the significant environmental damage caused by EV battery production and their toxicity,” he said.
Dan-Rep.-elect Keith Self, R-Texas, is seen outside a House Republican Conference meeting at the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday, January 3, 2023. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
The Biden administration has also faced sharp criticism for its call for a 100% EV army, something critics say puts “electric tanks” and a green agenda above US national security.
Fox News’ Thomas Catenacci contributed to this report.
Brandon Gillespie is an associate editor at Fox News. Follow him on Twitter at @brandon_cg.
