Remember when all of the United States could truthfully be described as a free country? Well, for some time now, every Democrat-dominated jurisdiction, city, county, and even state, has been working to make its residents less and less free. California may be one of the most egregious examples; that state, which was once the home of America's car culture, is even trying to mandate what kinds of cars residents are allowed, with their infamous electric vehicle (EV) mandate.
Now the Trump administration is suing to stop them, claiming the mandate is illegal.
President Trump’s Justice Department & Transportation Department Sue to Stop California’s Illegal EV Mandate
— U.S. Department of Justice (@TheJusticeDept) March 12, 2026
“Oppressive, expensive electric vehicle mandates drive up costs for American consumers and violate federal law,” said @AGPamBondi. “California is using unlawful policies… pic.twitter.com/yRhlHbFQGo
The post concludes:
...unlawful policies from the last administration to create exorbitant costs for our citizens — this Department of Justice is proud to stand with @POTUS and @SecDuffy to bring litigation that will make life more affordable for American consumers.”
The official press release is here. That release states in part:
President Donald J. Trump and Secretary Duffy created the “Freedom Means Affordable Cars” initiative to save the American people $109 billion over the next five years and save families $1,000 on the average cost of a new vehicle by resetting NHTSA’s corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) standards. California’s scheme would force carmakers to radically revamp their production lines nationwide to meet standards more stringent than the national standards adopted by NHTSA. The deviation would send car prices through the roof, restrict consumer choice, and undermine interstate commerce.
California intends to restrict consumer choice, and this would have a chilling effect on the auto industry, not only in California but in neighboring states; it is, again, as though California Democrats were deliberately trying to drive the productive people out of the once-Golden State.
The press release concludes:
This case challenges the state’s regulations as preempted under the Energy Policy and Conservation Act, which makes NHTSA the exclusive regulator of fuel economy in the United States.
The litigation involves defendants California’s Air Resources Board and its executive officer in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California.
California's Governor, the impeccably coiffed Democrat Gavin Newsom, had negotiated a waiver with the Biden administration to allow California's Air Resources Board to adopt the 2022 Advanced Clean Cars II policy, which mandated an ever-increasing percentage of new cars and trucks sold in the once-Golden State to be "zero-emissions." That's a canard, of course; electric vehicles simply transfer the emissions to another location. It still requires energy to move a vehicle of a certain weight a certain distance, and the fever dreams of leftist governors notwithstanding, that energy doesn't come from pixie dust. And that's the other side of the problem: Thanks to Democrat policies, California's energy sector is treading water and about to go down for the third time.
Read More: Ford Now Dropping All-Electric F-150 Lightning Amid $13B EV Losses
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We'll be following this case with great interest. You can view the DOJ case filing here.
Editor’s Note: The 2026 Midterms will determine the fate of President Trump’s America First agenda. Republicans must maintain control of both chambers of Congress.
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