Shift to EVs enrich China, hurt US autoworkers | Opinion
It’s time to deliver a message to the Biden administration and their executive friends at the Big Three: Stop caving to the radical left and the Chinese Communist Party. Put Ohio workers, their wages, and their jobs first.
The Biden administration and the executives of the Big Three auto manufacturers have put a political agenda ahead of working families in Ohio. We’ve watched as industry executives have capitulated to the extreme, job-killing agenda of the Biden administration while Ohio has suffered the consequences. The extreme agenda − the premature, government-forced transition to electric vehicles (EVs) − is not being pursued for Ohio workers and their families. It’s a shameless effort to shore up some major donors and deep-pocketed special interest groups. And it has led to this UAW strike, which could cripple Ohio’s economy, and the budget of thousands of Ohio families.
I’m not new to the auto industry. I purchased my first car dealership in 2005 and grew that one dealership into one of the largest dealership groups in America, eventually employing over 1,000 Ohioans. I know the business, and perhaps more importantly, I know how to have success while taking care of employees and their families.
Here’s the reality: The expensive and forced transition to EVs does much more good for China than the Ohio worker. While the transition bolsters China’s economy, it is costing American jobs and weakening the industry that supports them.
Today, China either controls or manufactures more of the underlying materials to manufacture EVs. The last thing the American auto industry needs is to open the door for a complete takeover by the Chinese Community Party. It doesn't only weaken our economy, but our footing on the international stage as we face our greatest threat.
And what is the evidence that this transition is premature and forced? On Ford’s second quarter financials, released earlier this summer, they reported that they lose more than $32,000 per EV they sell, and their EV division will lose $4.5 billion this year. As someone who made his living operating businesses and selling cars − and as someone with a functioning brain − I can tell you that math doesn’t add up.
Beyond the forced manufacture of these vehicles is the harmful fuel efficiency requirements and corporate fuel economy standards. This doesn't just impact the auto industry, but others that rely on natural gas use and production like our agricultural producers, trucking and shipping workers and many more. It also increases costs for every single American energy user. We can all encourage innovation through less government regulation and red tape, which would allow for market forces to determine the timing of any transition.
American auto workers need a strong auto industry to make a living and continue operating as the best craftsmen in the world. In order to do so, Biden must stop subsidizing and incentivizing EV supply chains that run right through China. It enriches the Chinese Communist Party, and ships our jobs overseas.
So, it’s time these businesses put the bottom line of their workers and the American taxpayer ahead of the ideology of the Biden White House. Their agenda is helping China and a small group of radical special interests − not workers, not Ohio and not the American economy.
Bernie Moreno is a Republican candidate for U.S. Senate in Ohio.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Shift to EVs enrich China, hurt US autoworkers | Opinion
