Western South Dakota News

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) criticized President Biden's electric vehicle mandates as costly and unrealistic during a Senate Republican leadership press conference. Thune highlighted the challenges posed by the administration's energy agenda, particularly in relation to consumer costs and income adjustments.

Thune expressed concerns over the impact of President Biden's energy policies on the nation, stating, "Here at home, for the past three years, President Biden and his administration have been pursuing their costly and radical Green New Deal, which not only has lessened our energy security, but it has increased the costs for consumers across this country. In fact, since President Biden took office, energy costs have risen, on average, 35 percent."

Referring to the recent announcement of electric vehicle mandates, Thune remarked, "The president has announced his mandate for the American people to drive electric vehicles." He pointed out the financial challenges faced by Americans in meeting these mandates, stating, "Now, the average cost of an electric vehicle is $52,000. And Americans have seen their real income since Biden took office go down by 4.2 percent... he's asking the American consumer to buy electric vehicles, $52,000 per electric vehicle, at a time when their real income has gone down since he's been in office, all in pursuit of a Green New Deal fantasy."

Thune also highlighted legislative efforts by fellow senators to address the mandates, mentioning, "...Senators Ricketts, Sullivan, Crapo all have legislation out there that would roll back these onerous, costly, and unrealistic mandates that this president has put forward on the American people to force them into electric vehicles." He emphasized the impracticality of such mandates in various parts of the country, including regions with long distances and extreme temperatures.

In conclusion, Thune underscored the opposition to what he deemed as unaffordable and ill-advised policies, asserting, "It's not realistic, it is unaffordable, and it is an ill-advised policy, and we will do everything we can to try and see that it gets stopped."