Trump blocked California's rules from mandating electric vehicle sales
President Donald Trump issued three resolutions to block California's decision to ban the sale of gasoline-powered cars by 2035, affecting 17 states.
Three resolutions were issued by President Donald Trump on Thursday that block California's 2024 decision to ban new gasoline-powered car sales by 2035. The move also affects 17 other states that adopted the plan in 2024. The move also revoked the federal extension that allows the state to establish its own emission standards.
“We officially rescued the U.S. auto industry from destruction by terminating the California electric vehicle mandate once and for all,” said the president at a news conference at the White House. This move also put Trump against Tesla, led by Elon Musk, who attacked him on social media during the last attacks.
California responds with a lawsuit
In response, California Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a statement that he would be suing the president, remarking that he is a "wholly-owned subsidiary of big polluters." The lawsuit was finally filed, announced by Rob Bonta, the state’s attorney general, who declared that 10 other states had filed the lawsuit.
"Trump's all-out assault on California continues – and this time he's destroying our clean air and America’s global competitiveness in the process. We are suing to stop this latest illegal action," wrote Newsom in a statement. Trump and the governor are facing each other over the National Guard deployment in Los Angeles.
President Trump and Elon Musk are not longer closest allies, since they start a public facing on social media last week. Photo: AFP News
Trump against Musk once again
"Now I know why Elon doesn't like me so much," said the president while he was signing the bill against the California Electric Vehicle Act. He was referring to their conflict with the Tesla owner, although their discussion started over another issue. Mentioning the South African CEO must be a mocking reference to Musk's rectification on social media.
Despite focusing on self-driving cars, Tesla is the main company that makes electric vehicles in the U.S. However, their income only grew by 1 percent in 2024 and their automotive business turnover decreased by 6 percent. The new resolution also hits the environment, and according to the United Nations, air contamination could cost 6 percent of America’s GDP.
