By Kennedy Maize
Donald Trump wants Americans to use more energy. In their cars. In their homes. On the job.
President Trump and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy in the gaudy oval office on Wednesday (Dec. 3) announced a roll-back on fuel efficiency standards for cars and light trucks, the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) rules. The move is another shot at the Biden administration, which raised the CAFE standard for the 2031 model year from 34.5 miles per gallon to 50.4 mpg.
As a practical matter, the Wall Street Journal reported, the move was largely irrelevant. The administration and Congress in June agreed to eliminate fines for not meeting the Biden standards. The WSJ added that the roll back also “does away with a system in which automakers can buy credits from competitors to offset fines, a setup that proved to be a boon for electric-vehicle maker Tesla.”
Trump has long scorned EVs, although he publicly announced in March he was buying a bright red Tesla Model S from Elon Musk at a press event in front of the White House, turned into a new car lot, when he and Musk briefly renewed their bromance. Whether Trump actually paid for the vehicle or has driven it are unknowns. 
Announcing the CAFE remodel, the White House produced a “fact sheet” which is long on brags and claims and short on facts. The fact sheet revealed Trump’s true views on EVs: “The Biden standards would have compelled widespread shifts to EVs that American consumers did not ask for, accompanied by significant cost-of-living increases. Since EVs are so expensive to build, automakers must sell them at a loss and make up the difference by significantly raising the sticker price of gas cars.” That is a lie.
The fact sheet, echoed in the DOT news release, also claims the CAFE downsize “will save American families $109 billion in total over the next five years. By helping more Americans buy newer, safer vehicles, this reset is projected to save more than 1,500 lives and prevent nearly a quarter-million serious injuries through 2050.” Those “facts” appear to have been invented, not a product of a public analysis.
The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) trashed the administration on the CAFE action. ACEEE transportation director Rachel Aland said, “Efficient vehicles save money for Americans. This proposal would raise fuel costs for millions of drivers, adding to the financial strain on families and businesses. If this rule is finalized, U.S. automakers will be less competitive as other countries race ahead in manufacturing cleaner vehicles that cost less to drive.”
Downsizing the CAFE is part of a broader administration challenge to government-wide energy efficiency programs. On Nov. 20, in an entirely cryptic news release, the Department of Energy let slip that it has eliminated its Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy and Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations and put their functions in the Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation. The evidence was contained only in a confusing org chart with no explanation.
The Wall Street Journal reported, “In early October, the administration said it would terminate more than $7 billion in awards for over 200 projects included in the clean-energy and energy-efficiency offices and several other offices. Most of the projects were in Democratic-led states and districts.”
Politico’s E&E News said DOE is also “rolling back regulations in its appliance standard program, which forces manufacturers to increase efficiency levels for household products and industrial equipment. The agency is also proposing to eliminate the Weatherization Assistance Program, a half-century-old initiative that subsidizes equipment efficiency upgrades for low-income households.” 
The Environmental Protection Agency, according to E&E News, “is waffling on whether to continue Energy Star, a program that certifies efficient household equipment and buildings. And Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act quickened the expiration of tax credits for residential energy efficient upgrades.” These programs are designed to lower monthly electricity bills at a time when the administration pushes artificial intelligence projects that gobble electricity and increase rates.
The Trump administration is doubling down on building new electricity generation rather than trying to reduce consumption. Energy Secretary Chris Wright tweeted a week ago, “Energy addition is the only way we will have enough electricity to lower prices and power AI in the U.S. The Trump administration is enabling existing power sources to increase their output and keep existing power online to find tens of megawatts on our existing grid to support American AI leadership.”
ACEEE’s Mark Kresowik, senior policy director, said, “Energy intensive industries are starting to increase energy demand in this country. Energy prices are increasing, and we’re also at a point where new supply is constrained. If the Trump administration succeeds in rolling back appliance standards and building codes and all the things it’s trying to do, costs are going to go up.”