Pete Buttigieg discusses Trump administration’s rollback of fuel efficiency standards
LEILA FADEL, HOST:
Pete Buttigieg led the Transportation Department in the Biden administration, when these fuel standards were set much higher. And he's on the line now to talk about this. Good morning, Secretary Buttigieg.
PETE BUTTIGIEG: Good morning. Nice to be with you.
FADEL: Thank you for being here. So the argument the Trump administration is making is that this will make cars cheaper to buy and the Biden era standards forced manufacturers to build electric cars that Americans didn't want. What's your reaction to that?
BUTTIGIEG: Even the Trump administration's own paperwork admits that this is going to cost consumers more, not less, at a moment when people are already hurting, with gas prices high because of Trump's war in Iran. They have found a way to make sure that Americans pay even more for gas than we would have, an estimated $1,600. And that's based on some pretty rosy estimates from the Trump administration that assume that gas will be under $3 as early as, well, this year, which obviously isn't happening.
The other thing I'm very worried about is the future of American auto innovation. This is basically a thumb on the scale for older technology at a moment when there's already enormous concern that American auto companies could be left behind. China is not pursuing their strategy out of environmental enthusiasm. They know that they have an opportunity to dominate the future of the auto market. And anything that means less innovation is going to help hand that advantage to China, on top of the simple fact that Americans will be paying much more now for gasoline than they would have otherwise.
FADEL: Well, let me ask you about that. I mean, 'cause you talk about how this is a possible disadvantage for the car industry as more people outside the U.S. buy electric. But American companies are supportive of this. Why would they be backing something that harms them long-term?
BUTTIGIEG: Well, they have always resisted these standards. This goes back to the Ford administration in the 1970s. Fuel economy on average was 13 miles a gallon. The original set of these standards pushed it up to 17. And the companies said, how can we comply with this?
They resisted. They said it would be too difficult. And, of course, it wound up being a good thing, not just for consumers, who pay less for gas, and of course, for the environment, but for the industry itself because it pushed them to innovate. Look, I grew up in South Bend, Indiana, in the shadow of the Studebaker car company factories that went silent in the '60s because that company couldn't innovate and get with the times. There is so much at stake in making sure that we have a forward-looking auto industry.
FADEL: You mentioned how this will end up costing people more money. But the current transportation secretary, Sean Duffy, has talked about how this would reduce the average cost of new vehicles by $1,300 and save consumers $138 billion over the next five years. What do you make of those numbers?
BUTTIGIEG: Well, it's extraordinary that even the Trump administration's numbers show that consumers will be worse off. They claim $1,300 in savings, which is dubious if you dig into it, but admit $1,600 in more gas costs. And again, that's before accounting for how much Trump has increased the price of gas. And that doesn't account for the tariffs. According to Kelley Blue Book, people are paying thousands of dollars more in vehicle prices because of the tariffs. This doesn't even come close to making people whole. The bottom line is this will make sure that American consumers pay more, all as a corporate giveaway for the agenda of oil companies and the short-term shareholder profits of these automakers.
FADEL: Now, these new standards call for carmakers to achieve an average fuel efficiency of just under 35 miles per gallon by model year 2031. Under Biden, it was 50.4. What was your basis for that number?
BUTTIGIEG: Well, this was the result of years of research, thousands of pages of analysis. Much of it reflected in the final rule based on what is realistic, what is feasible. It is designed to push industry. But it is also designed to be something that industry can achieve. And again, this goes back now about 50 years, every time that the standard has risen, going back to those early years when the big push was to get industry to be really ambitious and go from 13 miles a gallon to 17 miles a gallon.
Ever since then, that push has led to more innovation. That's why we have the dramatically more fuel-efficient vehicles that we enjoy today. And it has saved consumers over $3 trillion over the years. This move will cost consumers at the very moment when we need to be finding ways to have Americans pay more, not less, for gas than we already are.
FADEL: Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg served in the Biden administration. Thank you for your time and your insights.
BUTTIGIEG: Thanks for having me on.
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