Congressional Republicans Are Trying to Kill California's Gas Car Ban, but There's a Catch

It's unpleasant to say so, but how long will it be before the smart thing for the GOP to do will be to let California sink under the weight of its oppressive, one-party government? And at what point will enough Californians decide "enough is enough" to overcome the influence that the wealthy coastal elites have in Sacramento?

Republicans in Congress are now trying to force an end to California's "clean car rule" that will ban the sale of gasoline-powered cars in the once-Golden State by 2035. That's 10 years from now. But some procedural hurdles might forestall their efforts.

The U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday voted 246-164 on a GOP resolution to express congressional disapproval of California's Advanced Clean Cars II rule, which was first adopted in 2022 and establishes a minimum percentage of zero-emission cars that rises from 35% for the 2026 model year to 100% in 2035.
Before the Biden administration left office, it granted a Clean Air Act waiver to California in December to allow the rule to move forward. Democrat Gov. Gavin Newsom said at the time that "clean cars are here to stay" and added that "California can rise to the challenge of protecting our people by cleaning our air and cutting pollution."

I'm as big an advocate for federalism as anyone, but where does one draw the line? We are still working within a convoluted system of overlapping regulations and bureaucracies, and Congressional Republicans, including some from California (yes, there are still some Republicans in California), are trying to save California from itself.

There are, however, some procedural problems.

The nonpartisan Government Accountability Office analyzed the issue and determined that the Biden administration's waiver for the new California policy isn't considered a rule that can be overturned under the Congressional Review Act. Similarly, the Senate's parliamentarian, who oversees the upper chamber's rules and procedures, also issued a ruling this month that the waiver isn't a rule subject to the CRA.
The possibility of the Senate being unable to block the rule has raised the prospect of the rule taking effect in the near future and has prompted criticism from some in the energy and auto industry.

At this moment, it's looking a lot like this Biden-era rule, which has the support of California's majority Democrats, may well stay in effect.

Here's the onion: This goal, of eliminating the sale of gasoline-powered automobiles in 10 years, simply may not be achievable. And there's an added piece of stupidity; several other blue states are in the (bad) habit of adopting California's auto emissions policies and rules, no matter how bat-guano crazy they are.

Stand-Up Comedy: Newsom Claims He's Doing 'DOGE but Better' As California Suffers Massive Deficits

The rule, so far, doesn't affect cars already in the state, and it's unclear what would be done about the many internal-combustion-engined that may be brought in from out of state by people moving to California, assuming anyone still is moving to California. For that matter, there doesn't appear to be anything stopping Californians from driving to Idaho, buying a car, and taking it back. But there can be no doubt that this rule will make obtaining an auto and driving more expensive in California, and we would remind you that there is no such thing as a "zero-emissions" vehicle, just vehicles that shift the emissions from one place to another.

In other words, this entire thing is a fool's errand. At what point should the GOP, both in Congress and in California, simply sit back and watch as Sacramento makes another stupid mistake? Because those mistakes tend to be pretty hard on what's left of the Californian middle class.

The Democrat Party has never been less popular as voters reject its globalist agenda.

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