Ben Jealous: How clean energy naysayers help China and hurt American workers

Adobe Stock Photo (TriceEdneyWire.com)—Electric vehicles (EVs) are the future of transportation. As a driver of an (American-made) electric vehicle myself, I know firsthand the amount of money I have already saved compared to when I drove the gas-powered version of the same model. And that is before considering the benefit to our air quality, the climate, and how fun it is to drive.& But roughly& 60 percent of electric vehicles sold& worldwide are made by China. That is compared to just eight percent for American EVs. Moreover, Chinese sales continue to increase at a faster rate—79 percent compared to 55 percent& for American EVs between 2021 and 2022. Of course, part of the reason for this is the low prices of Chinese models. And part of the reason those low prices are possible is that the Chinese government has not exactly played fair—heavily subsidizing the industry in order to maintain its market dominance. But another reason China is so competitive is because of its domestic supply chain, especially localized battery production. US policymakers and our big automakers are finally waking up to the urgency of investing in EVs. As they are with solar and wind energy and battery manufacturing. But...