Since the beginning of his administration, President Biden has weaponized the heavy hand of government to tilt the scale in favor of policies that he supports – absent any congressional action or approval whatsoever. From his burdensome WOTUS rule on our farmers to his ridiculous plan to hike mortgage payments on responsible taxpayers to subsidize home loans for folks with low credit scores, the President has demonstrated that he will take any action necessary to advance his liberal agenda.
There is no clearer example of his executive overreach than his hasty and costly push to electrify every car and truck in the United States. At his direction, he has called on his administration – particularly the Environmental Protection Agency – to comply with a California mandate that bans the sale of new gas-powered cars by 2035. Born and raised in rural Iowa, I’m not too keen on implementing absurd California laws nationwide given that their most recent law – sanctioned by the U.S. Supreme Court – will significantly raise operating costs for Iowa hog farmers and hike pork prices for American families.
That’s why I voted for, and the U.S. House of Representatives passed, the Preserving Choice in Vehicle Purchases Act. This legislation combats the Biden administration’s proposed emission standards rule that would limit the sale of new vehicles with internal combustion engines and, thus, require electric vehicle sales to increase from 6% to 67% of all U.S. automobile sales in just a matter of years.
Once again, President Biden refuses to accept the facts. 95% of cars on the road today run on liquid fuel and are significantly more affordable and reliable than electric vehicles. In fact, the President’s own Secretary of Energy has admitted that four out of five new vehicles sold in the U.S. will be powered by liquid fuel by 2050. To that end, I also reintroduced, earlier this year, my Comparison of Sustainable Transportation (COST) Act, which would direct the Government Accountability Office and Secretary of Energy to compare the financial and environmental costs between replacing the entire federal gasoline-powered fleet with either electric vehicles or E-85 capable flex-fuel cars and trucks.
We must secure affordability and reliability for hardworking Americans. Instead of imposing burdensome mandates on our families – who are already struggling from the financial pain of “Bidenomics” – the President should embrace the untapped potential of homegrown biofuels to lower gas prices, end our reliance on countries like China for our energy needs, and restore American energy independence.
As Iowa’s voice in Congress, I pledge that I will continue to hold the Biden administration accountable for its excessive red tape, costly mandates, and executive overreach.
We are government together, and your thoughts and opinions matter to me. Please contact my office at Feenstra.House.Gov or by phone at 202-225-4426 if I can ever be of assistance. I am proud to represent our families, farmers, main street businesses, and rural communities in Congress.
