(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . “Factually incorrect” Buttigieg throws Rep Perry’s EV lies back at him in Congressional hearing [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.'] Date: 2024-06-28 Republicans have no moral compass. They lie as easily as they breathe. So, when Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg went to Congress on Thursday to answer questions about electric vehicles [EVs], he found himself mired in a morass of mendacity. Luckily, there are few better at swatting away bullshit than Pete. His antagonist was Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA). Perry is a professional Luddite. I doubt he has an informed opinion about EVs. But he does know that one of the GOP’s major team sponsors, the fossil-fuel industry, is against them. So Perry maintains they are the Devil’s spawn. When a conservative is against something, they will trot out ‘MAGA facts’ to support their opposition. Perry tried that alternative reality on Buttigieg. But Pete is nobody’s patsy. And he forced Perry to swallow some truths. Perry also tried two Republican debate strategies. He tried to talk over the other person. And he used trigger words to try and substitute emotional obfuscation for intellectual rigor. Sadly for Scott, Buttigieg used his opponent’s best stuff for batting practice. Perry got the ball rolling with his first trigger word - “bribe, ” - and a lie. “Now recognizing that attempts to bribe the industry and the public into EV adoption have literally failed at this point, continuing mandating CAFE standards, EPA tailpipe standards, that are de facto EV mandates.” The CAFE (Corporate Average Fuel Economy) standard is not a mandate to buy anything. Raising it merely requires that a car company make its average car more fuel efficient. Which, considering that Republicans are always whining about the price of gas, is something you would think they would support. Next, Perry does something unusual. He tells the truth . Ideological allies in 12 states are seeking to ban the sale of non-EV cars. Scott makes this sound like it’s a bad thing. But the government bans lots of things - like lead in gas. So this measure, which at the very least, will improve the air quality, is hardly unprecedented. Perry, then complains that the government will restrict what someone can buy. Now, we can talk about the proper role of government - that would be a great conversation - because I don’t think that we have the authority, or should have the authority, to limit what consumers can buy in this regard, what they can own. Again, this is hardly unprecedented. The government banned lawn darts - and the individual purchase of battle tanks. Then Perry made the obligatory reference to communism. Mr. Secretary, is there some point that you have identified, some point where you will stop, where the administration will stop, or the federal government will stop this requirement? And let the market, as opposed to the central planning model, and this dictatorial policy? “Dictatorial policy?“ This from a guy who thinks women should be mandated to give birth? It was Pete‘s turn. And he immediately slapped down Perry’s lies. “Thank you. Given that my time is limited, I will restrict myself to addressing the factually incorrect portions of what you have said, beginning with the assertion that EV sales are going down. They are in fact going up.” Perry interrupts ”Does that include government sales or just private sales!” Pete continues answering the original question. “Every single year … “ At this point, Perry just keeps talking over Pete. He is determined to falsely imply that the only reason EV sales are going up is only because the government is buying more. Note: Here are the facts. In 2023, a total of 1.4 million EVs were sold in the US. The federal government bought 5,800 - less than 1% of them. So far in 2024, EVs represent only 20% of total civilian government vehicle purchases. Which means that four out of five cars bought by the government are still gas-powered. The government’s effect on EV sales is negligible. Buttigieg shrugs off Perry’s blathering and addresses his second lie. “Let me address the second factual mistake in your remarks - which is that EV costs are getting higher. They are in fact getting lower. According to JD Power have now reached parity, or are slightly lower than gas-powered cars.” Perry asked if that included the EV subsidy. Buttigieg says it does. However, let us note that the federal government is always making transportation choices. In the 1950s, during a Republican administration, it invested heavily in the interstate highway system favoring cars over rail. So Perry’s complaint about government in the marketplace is disingenuous. Buttigieg addresses Perry’s third lie. ‘The third incorrect assertion that you made was that EV sales dropped in Q1.” He had to explain to Perry, that when comparing sales trends, you compare Q1 in 2024 to Q1 in 2023 (apples to apples), not to Q4 in 2023. I don’t know if Scott is an economic illiterate or a bald-face liar. But either way he’s misrepresenting the trend in EV sales. Buttigieg then makes the point that China is ramping up EV production and sales - not because they’re environmentalists, but because that’s where the money is. He makes the obvious point that America can make bank off new technology — or sit on the sidelines watching China reap the profits. Perry revisits his “Biden is mandating Americans buy EVS“ lie. Which opens the door for Buttigieg to lay more truth on him. “That brings me to the fourth and final thing that I need to challenge as being factually inaccurate. There is no mandate - If you want to pay for gas at the pump. But if you don’t, you can purchase an EV - with our help. Should the US cease to be the world’s largest economy, it will not be because the Chinese are capable of doing things better than Americans. It is because Republicans will shoot America in the foot. [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2024/6/28/2249072/-Factually-incorrect-Buttigieg-throws-Rep-Perry-s-EV-lies-back-at-him-in-Congressional-hearing?pm_campaign=front_page&pm_source=trending&pm_medium=web Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/