This past Sunday evening, Ron DeSantis, the Florida GOP governor, hurled criticism at President Joe Biden after it was announced that the Biden administration was starting to draft an executive order to make use of the Defense Production Act in order to “bolster the manufacturing capacity of electric vehicle producers in particular.”
DeSantis claimed that Biden has been “begging for oil from dictators” before then swapping gears to target the possible use of the Defense Production Act for sake of electric cars before he exclaimed, “Most Americans suffering due to high gas prices don’t have the luxury of spending $50k+ on an electric car. Unleash American energy today!”
He stated, “After begging for oil from dictators, Biden is now using emergency war powers to produce batteries for the 1% that drive electric cars. Most Americans suffering due to high gas prices don’t have the luxury of spending $50k+ on an electric car. Unleash American energy today!”
After begging for oil from dictators, Biden is now using emergency war powers to produce batteries for the 1% that drive electric cars.
Most Americans suffering due to high gas prices don’t have the luxury of spending $50k+ on an electric car.
Unleash American energy today!
— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) March 27, 2022
The director of Master of Management Studies in Systemic Risk at Yale University and senior editor for the Yale Program on Financial Stability (YPFS) and Aidan Lawson, a former YPFS research associate, June Rhee, highlighted of the Defense Production Act, “The DPA gives the president the authority to compel the private sector to work with the government to provide essential material goods needed for the national defense.” Military Times went on to add, “The Defense Production Act of 1950 was signed by President Harry S. Truman amid concerns about supplies and equipment during that war.”
In regards to the comment about begging for oil from dictators, CNN highlighted early on in March that officials within the Biden administration had taken time to travel to Venezuela “for talks on potentially allowing the country to sell its oil on the international market, helping to replace Russian fuel,” and then added, “… a looming nuclear deal could bring significant volumes of Iranian oil back to the market.”
As reported on Thursday by The Intercept, “The Biden administration is drafting an executive order invoking the Defense Production Act to alleviate shortages of key minerals needed for the technology to store clean energy. The act … would bolster the manufacturing capacity of electric vehicle producers in particular…”
Said report was followed quite a few hard-Left Democrat senators, which included Ed Markey and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Martin Heinrich of New Mexico, Cory Booker of New Jersey, and Jeff Merkley of Oregon coming together to author and send a letter to Biden on Wednesday in which they tried to call on Biden to make use of the Defense Production Act to “support and increase manufacturing capacity and supply chain security for technologies that reduce fossil fuel demand and fuel costs, such as electric heat pumps, efficient electric appliances, renewable energy generation and storage, and other clean technologies.”
The senators made use of the Russian invasion of Ukraine as a reason for putting forth their request, stating, “We encourage you to examine all possible routes to support and deploy clean energy and energy-efficient electric technologies as part of our near-term domestic and international response to the economic upheaval caused by Russia’s war on Ukraine.”
“The draft order also plays into domestic priorities. Last week, Granholm and Sen. Joe Manchin also announced a lithium battery supply chain program in West Virginia, which mineral production and processing would support,” highlighted the Intercept.
Hailing from West Virginia, Manchin went on to state, “While I remain concerned about our dependence on China and other foreign countries for key parts of the lithium-ion battery supply chain, engaging our strong and capable workforce to manufacture batteries domestically is a critical step toward reducing our reliance on other countries and ensuring we are able to maintain our energy security. I look forward to seeing this initiative grow, and we will continue to work closely together to ensure we can onshore the rest of the battery supply chain.”
In June of last year, Granholm stated, “Establishing a domestic supply chain for lithium-based batteries requires a national commitment to both solving breakthrough scientific challenges for new materials and developing a manufacturing base that meets the demands of the growing electric vehicle (EV) and stationary grid storage markets.”