My Fox Debate on Electric Cars
Yesterday I appeared on Fox Business to discuss whether a $100 million taxpayer investment in electric vehicle charging stations is worth it. I noted during the debate that it’s important that we invest in fuel diversity for our transportation sector, as we’ll never experience cheap gasoline again. We’re drilling record amounts of oil but it’s not leading to lower gas prices, as oil is priced globally – and today’s higher prices are driven by continued global demand. So the Feds should be investing in alternative transportation infrastructure. And the federal government has a long history of involvement in transportation infrastructure. Article I Section 8 of the US Constitution directed Congress to construct postal mail roads; the Pacific Railway Act of 1862 directed the federal government to give land away to railroads to help build a national network; and the 1956 Interstate Highway Act committed hundreds of billions of taxpayer dollars to construct a federal highway system, transforming America from an oil exporting nation to an oil importing country in less than a decade. $100 million to build electric car charging stations is a solid investment that, when coupled with expansion of public bus and other mass transit investments, can begin to help working families break our oil addiction.
Tyson Slocum is Director of Public Citizen’s Energy Program. Follow him on Twitter @tysonslocum
August 9, 2013 @ 11:05 pm
I agree completely. There is no single answer to reducing the carbon footprint of greenhouse gasses; we must try every alternative.
August 10, 2013 @ 9:16 am
By a media in cahoots with the corporatists, what you don’t know, never happened. This is the strategy being used by global corporations who are willing to sacrifice lives for their bigger cause–more oil, more drilling, more profits. There’s is so much drilling and fracking and pipelines all over this country, the numbers are unbelievable. People believe that the argument about more jobs and independence from the middle east for oil is worth it. It’s not. These corporations will do anything at all to lead you to believe that electric, solar, green energy transportation of all kinds are unrealistic sources of energy. They’re lying to you. They are manipulating you. Be proactive and research the facts. Do you really want this once beautiful country and planet to be completely destroyed just so a few can dominate and destroy all our natural resources.
August 10, 2013 @ 10:51 am
We are not addicted to oil! Oil is forced on us, our cars need gas to run and there are few exceptions. Big oil is spending billions of dollars to not only make sure they keep us dependent on oil, but to also make sure the auto industry does not make fuel efficient fuel systems in cars. The billions they are spending to keep our car guzzling gas is the same place they get the money to buy our politicians, the taxpayer, the government is giving big oil billions dollars of taxpayer money called subsidizing.
The fact is our politicians are addicted to the bribes from big oil to keep us prisoners of the oil industries.
August 10, 2013 @ 12:13 pm
The business model of oil companies: obtain drilling rights to properties, extract petroleum, process and sell at profit. The oil companies profits are the highest in the world. The financial incentive for alternative fuels will never appear until the oil companies have sucked the world dry of any naturally petroleum…
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