Corporate exhibitions are usually polished but solid. Companies spend a lot of money on lighting, staging, and all sorts of beautification to make their shows polished, but also solid. A little dull.
Companies don't want controversy. Angry words create unpredictable headlines and take focus away from your product. Therefore, the goal is a smooth “frictionless” platform to sell your products. But sometimes disagreements arise and sparks fly. This is bad news for communications planners and good news for news consumers. Because we learn more from free discussion than from formal discussion.
Case in point: At the Washington, D.C., car show on January 18, a real divide was heard: Republicans vs. Democrats. Who will decide the fate of the auto industry, the green technocrats or the customers?
Toyota EV advertising display at the Washington DC Auto Show on Thursday, January 18, 2024 in Washington, DC. (James Pinkerton/Breitbart News)
As with any area, companies primarily want to advertise cars in DC, but given that this is a power town, the show included: . public policy day. I've attended several of these policy days over the past few years, and they always feature mid-level government officials who talk in frank terms about “partnerships” between the public and private sectors. The federal government will support the auto industry and bail it out if necessary, so that the auto industry will start making cars (hopefully, but not necessarily). And of course, comply with all environmental laws and objectives. This ironic symbiotic relationship is encapsulated in electric vehicles (EVs).
General Motors (GM) is passionate about symbiosis. GM, once the world's largest company, bankruptcy In 2009; Uncle Sam poured in billions of dollars to pull it out of the hole. Since then, the company has become: thank you to federal authorities. GMs are now reliable cheerleaders for any green or woke idea. For example, CEO Mary Barra. according to her Company ProfileMs. Barra is a director of the Walt Disney Company, and “she serves as chair and founding member of GM's Inclusion Advisory Board.” I understand. No wonder Democrats love her. as president joe biden Said To my girlfriend in 2021: “Mary, you are… you are a great leader. You are really. ” With such subsidies and flattery, of course Barra and GM are fully committed to EVs. company declare“Working towards an all-electric future.”
President Joe Biden and General Motors CEO Mary Barra tour the Chevrolet exhibit hall during the 2022 North American International Auto Show on September 14, 2022 in Detroit, Michigan. (Mandel Gann/AFP via Getty Images)
In fact, the entire industry wants EVs. Toyota was a sponsor of the policy day, and signs saying “Electrify your vehicles” were everywhere. Beyond zero. ” It's a big green dream, just like getting CO2 to net zero by mid-century. At the session, a Toyota office worker said the company's goal is to offer consumers “all the options to reduce their carbon footprint.” Ah, that's right. Buyers have a “choice”. Pick any number you like, as long as it's zero. That was the intended message of the 2024 auto show: one of green unity between government and business. In fact, it's the same as the 2023 auto show.
But things have changed. In 2023, there was talk of taking advantage of the funding coming from the recently passed American Rescue Plan ($1.9 trillion), Inflation Control Act ($891 billionSome people say, more), and the Infrastructure Bill ($1.2 trillion).
But in 2024, we are in the midst of inflation, rising interest rates, and a series of financial crises. negative news items– The “EV craze” has, well, cooled down amid a cold wave that makes a mockery of EVs as an all-weather mode of transportation.
An abandoned electric car buried in snow on February 23, 2023 in Draper, Utah. (GEORGE FREY/AFP via Getty Images)
Most notably, two Republican senators It's icy. They were Rep. Mike Kelly of Pennsylvania and Rep. Roger Williams of Texas. On a bipartisan panel at the show, Kelly, himself a former car dealer before Congress, said the whole idea of EVs was a “false narrative.” A huge federal subsidy would be enough to sell it, he said. Williams accused the federal government of “trying to shove EVs down our throats.” Instead, he continued, Americans should be free to buy what they want.
Two Democrats on the panel were surprised by the ferocity of the Republican attack. representative Debbie Dingell of Michigan and Marcy Capture of Ohio both opposed it, but their objections actually contradicted each other. On the other hand, they said, Europeans are far ahead when it comes to EVs, and we Americans need to catch up. On the other hand, he also said that EVs are an opportunity for American leadership. So which one is it? Are we behind or ahead? Either way, Democrats firmly believe that green energy is the energy. wave of the futureso it's wrong, just mistakentrying to stop progress as progressives define it. Kelly retorted with a jab, Europeans should follow our lead.
Lawmakers attend a panel discussion at the Washington, DC, Auto Show on January 18, 2024. From left to right: Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-MI), discussion moderator Rep. Daphna Linzer, Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-OH), and Rep. Bob Latta (R-OH). , Congressman Roger Williams (R-TX). (James Pinkerton/Breitbart News)
From left to right: Rep. Bob Latta (R-Ohio), Rep. Roger Williams (R-Texas), and Rep. Mike Kelly (R-Texas) participate in a panel discussion at the Washington, D.C., auto show in January. (Republican, Pennsylvania) 18, 2024, Washington, DC. (James Pinkerton/Breitbart News)
The give-and-take, which took place well beyond the program's allotted time, highlighted important differences of opinion. While Democrats tend to praise Europe's green nanny nationalism, Republicans do not. Most Americans probably agree with the Republican Party. Here in A America, we like gas cars, guns, and small government.
Williams also argued that EVs offer the following opportunities: Chinese Leadership has been like this ever since the communist regime ordered the economy to produce “green” technology (batteries and solar panels) that could be sold to the West. Of course, the basis of its production is burning coalis the cheapest fuel. Yes, that's strange. China pollutes itself (and the world) so it can sell us “clean” goods. (Coal can be cleaned, but it must be cleaned.)
In fact, communist regimes produce so many plants that are not green; garbage that. Economic analyst Michael Dunn said: write in car news“Chinese automakers have overcapacity and bloody price wars at home. For them to profit, they need access to Europe and the United States.”
A large part of the Biden administration's policy is telling China to “bring it to us.”
the president signed presidential order and memorandum It calls for net zero by 2030 or 2035 (which is net zero for the US, but certainly not for China). aNo, Biden did not set these goals in consultation with Congress. Congress was not consulted. The 46th president shares the same view as the 44th president, Barack Obama, who said in 2014 that he could decide policy. “A pen and a phone.” In other words, it bypasses Congress and relies on the administrative state.
There is one problem with this approach. That's the next point. rightfulness. If the president's policies are approved by Congress, they will be significantly strengthened. That's true of both President Obama's 2010 health care plan and President Donald Trump's 2017 tax cuts. Both were strongly opposed by the other side, but since they were enacted into law, they have survived many political attacks since then.
The second problem is that unilateral enforcement actions tend to be lacking. Popularity. If the idea is popular, Congress will likely want to pass it. However, EVs are not in the category of people's delight. Just on January 19th, amid the latest setbacks in the electrical industry, Ford announced The company said it is scaling back EV production while expanding internal combustion engine (ICE) production.
President Joe Biden drives the new electric Ford F-150 Lightning at the Ford Dearborn Development Center in Dearborn, Michigan, May 18, 2021. (Nicholas Kamm/AFP via Getty Images)
What lies ahead? These days, your crystal ball is more likely to be two lenses. One red, one blue. So, bOther red ICEs and blue EVs are likely to be around for a while, although they are concentrated in different regions of the country.
Two shades that see into the future. Thankfully, two Republicans at the car show want to give us a choice. You'll know if you'll be invited back in 2025.
