Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin (R) didn’t hesitate to choose his constituents over a CNN audience.
During the June 6 edition of The Lead with Jake Tapper, CNN anchor Jake Tapper attempted to guilt trip Youngkin over his decision to take Virginia off the bureaucrat-imposed, draconian California emission standards. Youngkin let the smarmy anchor finish whining about climate change, then spoke up for the freedom and finances of Virginians, drivers, and auto dealers. The governor wasn’t willing to limit freedom for climate change: “The reality is that mandates are misguided. Let's trust innovation and let's put that trust in the American consumer as opposed to mandating what people can and can't buy.”
Largely ignoring Tapper’s argument for tyranny, Youngkin made his case against the mandate. “The decision that we made yesterday was to no longer be subjected to the California mandates on which car you can buy,” Youngkin said. He went on to explain that these standards would not just limit Virginian’s choices, but also impact their budgets. Youngkin said that his administration made a decision that “having California with unelected bureaucrats, mandate which car people can buy was wrong, but we also made a decision to protect people's pocketbooks and to give them the benefit of choosing which car they think is best for their needs.”
Youngkin was referencing the fact that the California Air Resources Board (CARB) approved draconian regulations in August of 2022 to phase out sales of gas-powered cars. According to CARB, the state has mandated that “all new passenger cars, trucks and SUVs sold in California will be zero emissions” by 2035. CARB also demands that the states following the group’s standards sell 35% electric vehicles by the rapidly approaching date of 2026.
Youngkin made the point that electric vehicles are “$10,000 to $50,000” more expensive than normal gas cars. The governor pointed out that this higher cost puts an incredible burden on Virginians. Youngkin noted that only nine percent of cars recently sold in Virginia are electric vehicles, vastly less than the 35% Virginia would be expected to achieve by 2026. Youngkin emphasized the cumulative cost of forcing Virginians to buy more expensive vehicles: “That's upwards of $1.2 billion of economic penalty being placed on Virginians.”
The Virginia governor also discussed his decision during a June 5 appearance on CNBC. Youngkin told Last Call anchor Brian Sullivan that “we are declaring Independence from California electric vehicle mandates.” Sullivan, for his part, frankly admitted that “the consumer is speaking and speaking loudly,” since only nine percent of vehicles purchased by Virginians are electric vehicles.
[WATCH: Governor Youngkin Tears Into California Emissions Standards on CNBC]
Conservatives are under attack! Contact ABC News at 818-460-7477, CBS News at 212-975-3247 and NBC News at 212-664-6192 and demand they hold the left accountable for attempting to restrict the Americans people’s automobile choices.
