Trump's running mate wants incentives to buy gas-powered vehicles
Ohio Republican Senator J.D. Vance, newly chosen by Donald Trump as his running mate in the U.S. presidential campaign, will be increasingly visible in the coming months and beyond, as he is likely to become the future Vice President of the United States.
Formerly a Trump critic and solar energy advocate who spoke out on the dangers of global warming, Vance has drastically changed his tune in recent years, having sought the former president's support to win his Senate seat in 2022 and also revised his environmental stance.
In September 2023, he introduced the controversial Drive American Act, which would initially eliminate all subsidies for the purchase of electric vehicles under the Inflation Reduction Act introduced under President Joe Biden.
These subsidies, which can be as much as $7,500 per electric vehicle (provided production and the majority of components are local), exceeded $1 billion between January 1 and June 12, 2024, according to the U.S. Treasury Department.
Financing... combustion-powered vehicles
Accusing the current president of having “contributed to the exodus of hundreds of thousands of jobs”, notably to Canada and Mexico, and of having penalized unionized American workers, Vance wants the Drive American Act to encourage the adoption of American-made combustion vehicles.
Under a new subsidy called America First Vehicle Credit, buyers of new gasoline and diesel vehicles, including hybrid models, could receive up to $7,500. The amount would be calculated according to the number of seats and payload capacity. In other words, the larger the vehicle and the more it can take (and therefore the more polluting it is), the more generous the assistance.
To qualify, the vehicles in question would have to be assembled in the U.S. by well-paid American workers using American-made parts. Subsidies would go to individuals earning less than $150,000 a year and married couples whose combined income does not exceed $300,000.
As they say, only in America... See you in 2025 to see whether Vance will succeed in getting his bill passed.
