California’s Senate President pro tem Kevin de León (D-Los Angeles) is promising to take President Donald Trump’s administration to court if it fails to renew the federal waiver that allows California to set stricter vehicle emission standards than the rest of the nation.
De León — who recently admitted “half [his] family is here illegally” — made the threat in an interview with the Desert Sun as he attended a Democrat reception in Palm Desert Thursday, accompanied by Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Paramount).
If Scott Pruitt, Trump’s EPA chief, takes on California’s “clean air” waiver, de León said, the state would take legal action.
“We will see him in a court of law,” de León promised.
De León may not need to lift a finger, as environmental activist groups are also lining up to defend what is shaping up to be California’s sacred cow — in a state that is now regulating cow flatulence.
The left-wing Mother Jones, lays out the case against any move by the Trump administration to restrict California’s power to set stricter auto emissions standards than anywhere in the country, pointing out that “under Section 177 of the Clean Air Act, any state looking for more than the federal package of regulations can opt to follow California’s auto standards.”
That argument could give an activist federal judge the justification needed to freeze any attempt to revoke the California waive.
More significantly, the author points out that California’s emission standards drive industry standards overall, since American carmakers don’t want “to build “California cars” and “rest of the world cars.”
“All cars meet the California standard,” says Rebecca Lindland, an analyst at Kelley Blue Book, in the Mother Jones piece.
Recent comments about the role of carbon dioxide in climate change by EPA Administrator Pruitt have the left and in the media outraged. And with greenhouse gas emissions included in vehicle emission standards — not just in California, but nationwide, thanks to the Obama administration — California’s Democrat-dominated legislature isn’t backing down, but rather pressing their advantage.
De León told the Desert Sun “that he’s still working on the details of his new plan to make California’s electricity sources 100 percent climate friendly by 2045.”
His previous legislation includes a bill mandating a 50% target by 2030.
“I believe that all three utilities will easily get to 50 percent without breaking a sweat,” he said. “I’m wondering if I made a mistake originally by settling on 50 percent as opposed to 100 percent and shooting for the moon.”
There was no comment from De León on the possible economic impact of increasing energy costs, pushing more and more manufacturers out of the state of California to greener — or less green-obsessed — pastures like Texas.
Tim Donnelly is a former California State Assemblyman, whose doing a book tour, speaking about how we can Make CA Great Again (#MCGA)!
Author, Patriot Not Politician: Win or Go Homeless
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Twitter: @PatriotNotPol