Photo: Subaru/Ford/Rivian
As much as we avoid talking about it at all costs, the American auto industry in Detroit and elsewhere is perpetually joined at the hip to Washington D.C. But, with the 2022 mid-term elections on the horizon, the outcome could have more profound effects than in recent years.
But what makes this year's mid-term election more notable than any other, at least on the automotive side of things, is the source of power for their drivetrains. The wide-scale implementation of electric vehicles and their accompanying infrastructure has been a key priority of the Biden administration ever since the Joe Biden administration took office last year.
In an effort championed by the current secretary of Transportation, Pete Buttigieg, in February of this year, as much as $5 billion in government funds was to be dispersed for the purposes of improving nationwide EV infrastructure. All in preparation for a comprehensive shift from fossil fuel internal combustion to a zero-emission system as soon as the end of the decade.
This includes direct monetary injections into infrastructures like EV charging stations and city EV maintenance facilities. On paper, it all sounds lovely. But in the era of many political footballs, can any of it last beyond the Biden presidency? We've already seen more conservative members of congress on the Democrat's side like Joe Manchin and Keirsten Sinema give strong pushbacks on EV infrastructure spending, mainly in the form of stonewalling great swaths of legislation intended for President Biden's Build Back Better infrastructure initiative.
Considering only a single Republican congressman voted in favor of the bill, and with the party prospected to make significant gains in the 2022 mid-terms, it's anyone's guess if events will lead to a Republican-led house and senate to kill any momentum the EV industry had in the U.S. while still very much in the cradle. We can only wait and wonder until November this year before we have our answer.
In an effort championed by the current secretary of Transportation, Pete Buttigieg, in February of this year, as much as $5 billion in government funds was to be dispersed for the purposes of improving nationwide EV infrastructure. All in preparation for a comprehensive shift from fossil fuel internal combustion to a zero-emission system as soon as the end of the decade.
This includes direct monetary injections into infrastructures like EV charging stations and city EV maintenance facilities. On paper, it all sounds lovely. But in the era of many political footballs, can any of it last beyond the Biden presidency? We've already seen more conservative members of congress on the Democrat's side like Joe Manchin and Keirsten Sinema give strong pushbacks on EV infrastructure spending, mainly in the form of stonewalling great swaths of legislation intended for President Biden's Build Back Better infrastructure initiative.
Considering only a single Republican congressman voted in favor of the bill, and with the party prospected to make significant gains in the 2022 mid-terms, it's anyone's guess if events will lead to a Republican-led house and senate to kill any momentum the EV industry had in the U.S. while still very much in the cradle. We can only wait and wonder until November this year before we have our answer.
Google News