Transportation Secretary Buttigieg has made a complete mess of his job. Now it’s the end of the line.
And Pete Buttigieg said a single sentence that ended his career on the spot.
Pete Buttigieg, an outspoken supporter of electric cars (EVs), acknowledged to having difficulty finding trustworthy EV charging stations when on the road.
Buttigieg complained to the Wall Street Journal about public EV charging stations at the same time that President Joe Biden’s administration initiated an effort to refurbish the over 6,000 charging stations that are “temporarily unavailable.”
“We’ve definitely had that experience,” Buttigieg said about pulling into EV charging stations, only to realize they are out of service.
“Matter of fact, had it just a few days ago at a park in town.”
“Imagine what it would be like if you couldn’t be sure when you pulled into a gas station that you’d actually get gas out of it,” he added.
“This is about making sure that access to charging is as reliable as access to fuel is today for gas cars, and we know that that’s not just a question of quantity but also one of quality.”
On Wednesday, Biden’s administration announced $100 million in federal assistance to fix “existing but non-operational, electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure.”
“Thanks to President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, we are building up a national EV charging network with chargers Made in the U.S.A.,” Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said in a statement.
“Today’s investment is a pivotal step toward revitalizing our current charging infrastructure making EV driving cheaper, more reliable, and more convenient.”
More than 6,000 public charging outlets are “temporarily unavailable” to EV drivers out of the approximately 150,000 available to them.
According to the WSJ, charging ports fall into this category for reasons such as routine maintenance, power difficulties, or vandalism damage.
The worry of becoming stuck on the road is referred known as “range anxiety,” and it is said that EV drivers experience it, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The $100 million comes from Biden’s $1.2 trillion infrastructure program, which Congress approved in 2021.
The August J.D. Power survey shows Tesla charging stations are now the most reliable, with only a 4% failure rate. Chargers outside of the Tesla network, on the other hand, had a 20% failure rate.
“Overall, driver sentiment about charging has been on the decline since 2021, and charger build-out isn’t keeping pace with the rapid arrival of more EVs, said Brent Gruber, J.D. Power’s executive director, EV practice,” the Wall Street Journal reported.
“You’re taking an area that’s already deficient in terms of availability and you’re widening that gap,” Gruber told the outlet.
Maybe we should give gas-powered cars a shot…just a thought.
Stay tuned to The Federalist Wire.
