Gavin Newsom is trying to export his extreme agenda to the rest of the country.
But resistance is starting to build against the idea of turning the rest of America into California.
And Gavin Newsom was fuming after he was handed this electric vehicle setback.
Virginia pulls out of California’s electric vehicle mandate
California is the national leader in trying to force divers into electric vehicles.
The unelected bureaucrats at the California Air Resources Board (CARB) voted in 2022 to become the first state in the country to ban the sale of new gas-powered vehicles by 2035 in order to curb tailpipe emissions.
California Governor Gavin Newsom celebrated the decision by falsely claiming that cars were causing glaciers to melt.
“For too many decades, we have allowed cars to pollute the air that our children and families breathe,” Newsom said at the time. “Our cars shouldn’t make wildfires worse — and create more days filled with smoky air. Cars shouldn’t melt glaciers or raise sea levels threatening our cherished beaches and coastlines.”
California’s decision had major implications for the rest of the country.
The Federal Clean Air Act allows states to follow California’s strict emission standards or the looser federal one.
California was given a carveout under federal law to set its own emission standards.
Democrat-controlled states were eager to bind themselves to the stricter emission standards in the Golden State.
Virginia’s Democrat-controlled State Legislature voted in 2021 to tie itself to emission standards set by unelected bureaucrats on the other side of the country.
Residents of the state would have Californians decide what vehicles they were able to drive.
Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin (R) has been trying to get his state out of this insane pact with California since he was elected in 2021.
But his efforts ran into a roadblock in the Democrat-controlled State Senate.
Youngkin announced that Virginia was dropping the California electric vehicle mandate after a legal opinion from Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares (R).
Virginia is declaring its independence once again
Youngkin and Miyares announced that the state’s pact with California would terminate at the end of 2024 – saving Virginians from being forced to buy electric vehicles.
“Once again, Virginia is declaring independence — this time from a misguided electric vehicle mandate imposed by unelected leaders nearly 3,000 miles away from the Commonwealth,” Youngkin said. “The idea that the government should tell people what kind of car they can or can’t purchase is fundamentally wrong.”
Virginia Democrats were outraged at the decision, with Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell (D) comparing Youngkin to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Despite the best efforts of Democrats, demand for electric vehicles has cratered nationally.
That’s why Miyares decided to call the bluff of Virginia Democrats.
He said the Democrat State Legislature was welcomed to explain to voters why the state should follow California’s electric vehicle mandate.
“That’s the beauty of democracy,” Miyares said. “If you want to purchase an electric vehicle, that is your choice, but, rather than enforcing a one-size-fits-all mandate, I want Virginia consumers to choose the transportation options that best suit their specific needs and circumstances.”
Since Democrats know the public doesn’t want electric vehicles, they are trying to force them to buy one.
Patriot Political will keep you up-to-date on any developments to this ongoing story.
