Freedom’s Death Knell

Author: R. Alan Harrop, Ph.D

There is an old saying “Death by a thousand cuts,” which of course means slowly destroying something by small increments. Well, the Biden regime’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is at it again, diminishing your freedom one regulation at a time. They recently announced new, impossibly restrictive emission standards that will, they hope, force more people to buy electric vehicles (EVs). This, in spite of strong evidence, that less than 15% of the American people have any desire to buy an EV. Dictators do not care what you think.

What is worse, you are already paying for every EV sold in America through subsidies and other government programs and incentives. The Texas Public Policy Foundation reported that as much as $48,000 of the cost of an EV is paid by you the taxpayer spread over 10 years, not the owner. This amounts to $22 billion of your taxpayer money. This is similar to Biden’s student loan forgiveness program, which does not forgive anything; it merely passes the debt onto other taxpayers. That is how Marxism works, and how a regime stays in power, by using government actions to buy votes.

Who is buying these EVs you might ask? Well, it is primarily wealthy Democrats in blue states like California, Washington, New Jersey, etc. The ten states with the lowest EV ownership are red states. See a pattern here of the Democrats rewarding themselves?

The new unattainable emission standards are expected to result in one-third of all cars manufactured will be EVs by 2027 and two-thirds by 2032. Not only will this restrict your ability to find and purchase an internal combustion vehicle, but will dramatically raise the price due to lack of supply to meet the demand. The Biden regime is also extending these impossible emission standards to trucks, including long haul trucks. The American Trucking Association stated that the new EPA standards are “entirely unachievable.” Imagine driving across country in an 18 wheeler and having to stop every 200 miles, find a charging station, and wait several hours before you can start up again. Think what this will do to the cost of moving goods. By the way, the Biden regime’s EPA announced these new restrictions a few days after the Hertz rental company announced they were selling one-third of their Tesla EV fleet because no one wanted to rent them. They also fired the executive who was responsible for the shift to EVs.

So here is the bottom line. This country was founded on freedom and liberty. Conservatives want to preserve our county and its freedoms. Purchasing an EV should be a free choice–not a government mandate. We are in the era of “Big Government” that the Founding Fathers warned us about. Marxism is government control of all aspects of people’s lives. Restricting travel is taking away our freedom one piece at a time. It is past time for all conservatives to band together and insist that the size of the federal government be dramatically reduced. Start by eliminating the Environmental Protection Agency (Dictatorship), the Department of Education, and firing the new 85,000 IRS agents. It is now or never.

The Cost Of ‘Green’ For The Consumer

Yesterday CNS News reported that the Center for Automotive Research has released a study stating that the Obama Administration’s new fuel economy standards will result in a retail price increase for the average car of $11,000.

The article reports:

Zoe Lipman, the National Wildlife Federation’s Senior Manager for Transportation and Global Warming Solutions argued on a conference call held Thursday that the estimated fuel savings due to these standards will outweigh the “modest” motor vehicle price increases for consumers.

I pointed out in a story Tuesday that there are some valid questions as to whether or not these new fuel standards are being legally implemented. CAFE standards have been set by Congress–not by the executive branch. There are also some valid questions as to whether or not global warming is man-made. I support the idea of fuel efficient cars, but I also support the idea of America developing her natural resources and technology to make cleaner running cars.

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Freedom Is Part Of America

Yesterday The Hill reported on a statement made by President Obama at a town hall forum in Cannon Falls, Minnesota.

The article reports that the President stated:

“You can’t just make money on SUVs and trucks.  There is a place for SUVs and trucks, but as gas prices keep on going up, you have got to understand the market. People are going to try to save money.”

Not only is this an amazing statement in view of the freedom Americans have to drive what they want to drive, it is an amazing statement to be made by someone who is traveling the country in three totally fuel inefficient buses.

The article reports:

The White House unveiled first-ever fuel efficiency rules for heavy-duty trucks last week. The standards come after the administration ratcheted up fuel economy standards for cars and light-duty trucks.

The administration negotiated the standards in a series of high-stakes closed-door meetings with industry. In the end, the White House won the endorsement of major automakers and truck companies.

Fuel economy standards are not up to the White House–the are established by Congress. On August 11, Congressman Darrell Issa wrote a letter to Attorney Kathryn Ruemmier, Council to the President,  stating:

It has come to my attention that the new Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) and EPA vehicle greenhouse gas (GHG) standards announced by President Obama and select automobile manufacturers on July 29, 2011, were negotiated in secret, outside the scope of the law, and could generate significant negative impacts for consumers. Specifically, I am concerned about the lack of transparency in the process leading up to the agreement, the expected increase in cost per vehicle, and the negative impact these standards could have on the safety of automobiles. Moreover, I remain concerned that the government’s ownership interest in General Motors and Chrysler at the time these negotiations were conducted creates a troublesome conflict-of-interest.

This letter may be an example of why the liberal press is running attack pieces on Darrell Issa. (see Rightwinggranny)  Anyway, this needs to be looked into. This is another power grab by the Obama Administration and needs to be turned back. CAFE standards were first enacted by Congress in 1975 in response to the Arab oil embargo of 1973. The auto manufacturers have been able to circumvent the CAFE standards by declaring Sports Utility Vehicles (SUV’s) to be trucks. SUV’s have been selling well, regardless of their low gas mileage, because consumers like the feeling of safety with an SUV and because SUV’s can carry more passengers.

The obvious answer here is to develop America’s fuel resources while allowing the private sector to explore alternative energy. If there is a practical fuel alternative out there, private industry will find it (if they are allowed to make a profit on it). Profit motive works–it provides incentive for progress. The answer to the transportation energy problem (as in many other problems) lies in less government involvement–not more.

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