Former President Donald Trump has slammed electric vehicles, saying that they are too expensive and lamenting the development of the American grid system.
Trump has made bold statements on electric vehicles before, citing issues around the new technology and saying that a full transition is not possible.
Speaking with Joe Kernen on CNBC Squawk Box yesterday, the former President revealed that he had spoken with Tesla founder and CEO Elon Musk.
Trump said it was a constructive talk, adding that he had been friends with the billionaire for a number of years.
Donald Trump said the electric vehicles 'cost too much'
REUTERS/GETTY
The assumed Republican candidate for the 2024 Presidential vote said he had helped Trump when he was in the White House, saying that he “liked” the South African businessman.
However, Trump acknowledged that the two have opposing views “on a minor subject called electric cars”.
The 77-year-old said he was “all for” electric cars but said there was a need to consider alternatives while pursuing a cleaner future.
He said: “You can’t just go to electric, I mean you have a grid system in this country that is obsolete and a disaster, its one of the things we worked on a lot.
“It can’t produce the electricity, it doesn’t get distributed. They’re not even a possibility to go all-electric. This Biden all-electric mandate is by very, very stupid people.”
The White House has unveiled plans for a Zero Emission Vehicle mandate through the Federal Sustainability Plan in a bid to boost the number of electric cars on roads.
It will require federal agencies to acquire 100 per cent light-duty ZEVs annually by 2027 and acquire 100 per cent medium- and heavy-duty ZEVs annually by 2035.
Despite the optimism around electric vehicles in the United States, Trump was far from complimentary when speaking to finance experts on Squawk Box.
He added: “First of all they don’t go far, they cost too much and they’re all going to be made in China.
“The auto workers are going to vote for Trump. I don’t know about the top union people because they’re just riveted into Democrats. I have no idea why, they’re like blind sheep.
“But the auto workers are going to vote for Trump. Look at my numbers in Michigan, I’m leading [Biden] by 12 or 14 points. It’s always hard for a Republican but not now.”
Writing on Truth Social, Trump went on a Christmas Day rant last year, saying that he hoped supporters of “electric car lunacy” would “rot in hell”.
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Elon Musk's Tesla is one of the world's most popular EV brands
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Despite Trump’s frustration towards electric cars, Elon Musk has been pushing to accelerate the development of EVs in the United States.
This includes manufacturing all Tesla electric vehicles in Fremont, California, as well as the new Cybertruck in the Austin, Texas Gigafactory.
Menlo Park and Palo Alto in California were also previously used to build the first-generation Roadster and the alpha build of the Model S respectively.