California Governor Gavin Newsom is defying a U.S. Senate vote that blocked the state’s landmark rule banning the sale of new gas-powered cars by 2035.
Calling the move “illegal” and “an unconstitutional attack,” Newsom vowed to take the fight to court.
California first announced a plan in 2020 to require that by 2035 at least 80 percent of new cars sold be electric and up to 20 percent plug-in hybrid models. The Biden administration approved the state’s waiver to implement the standards in December, a month before President Donald Trump returned to office.
Why It Matters
The Senate’s decision, part of a broader effort backed by Trump to double down on fossil fuels, threatens California’s aggressive transition toward electric vehicles and the state’s broader climate goals.
What To Know
In a sharp rebuke to the U.S. Senate, California Governor Gavin Newsom vowed on Thursday to fight what he called an “illegal” move by Congress to overturn the state’s groundbreaking rule banning the sale of new gas-powered cars by 2035.
The Senate also passed two other resolutions that block California rules curbing tailpipe emissions and smog-forming nitrogen oxide pollution from trucks.
“This is not about electric vehicles,” Newsom said at a press conference as the Senate was still voting. “This is about polluters being able to pollute more.”
Newsom and state air regulators said they will sue to keep California’s rules in place, with California Attorney General Rob Bonta arguing that Republicans used an illegal process to pass the measures.
“Republicans went around their own parliamentarian to defy decades of precedent,” Newsom said, vowing, “We’re going to fight this unconstitutional attack on California in court.”
California Attorney General Rob Bonta echoed the sentiment, saying: “With these votes, Senate Republicans are bending the knee to President Trump once again. The weaponization of the Congressional Review Act to attack California’s waivers is just another part of the continuous, partisan campaign against California’s efforts to protect the public and the planet from harmful pollution.”
Senate Republicans changed the usual rules on Wednesday so they could vote on these measures, even though the usual rules would have blocked them. They created a special exception to the filibuster—a rule that normally requires more than just a simple majority to move forward with votes. This allowed them to move forward with these controversial votes using just a simple majority.
Senate Republicans, led by Wyoming Senator John Barrasso, argued that the transition to electric vehicles is “costly for consumers and manufacturers, puts pressure on the nation’s energy grid and has become a de facto nationwide electric vehicle mandate.”
He added: “America cannot meet these impossible standards—not next year, and not in 10 years.”
John Bozzella, CEO of the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, echoed this, calling California’s EV mandates “never achievable,” arguing they would force automakers to buy costly compliance credits from Tesla.
However, Senate Democrats charge that Republicans are acting at the behest of the oil and gas industry and they say California should be able to set its own standards after obtaining waivers from the Environmental Protection Agency.
Senator Adam Schiff warned the move sets a dangerous precedent, saying the votes should “send a chill down the spine of legislators in every state.”
Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer called the maneuver a “point of no return,” accusing Republicans of being “fair weather constitutionalists.”
Environmental groups have also condemned the vote. Earthjustice president Abigail Dillen criticized the vote, saying: “While our Republican leaders may try to put the horse back in the barn when it comes to electric vehicles, the world has already shifted under their feet.”
Senator Elissa Slotkin was the only Democrat to side with Republicans, citing her duty to protect Michigan auto jobs.
Following the vote, Newsom announced that California would join an 11-state coalition to advance clean cars.
The Affordable Clean Cars Coalition, led by the U.S. Climate Alliance, aims to ensure America continues its transition to cleaner, more affordable vehicles, support U.S. carmakers and workers, and uphold states’ authority to set clean air standards.
Participating states are: California, Colorado, Delaware, Massachusetts, Maryland, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island and Washington.
What People Are Saying
California Governor Gavin Newsom said: “This Senate vote is illegal. Republicans went around their own parliamentarian to defy decades of precedent. We won’t stand by as Trump Republicans make America smoggy again—undoing work that goes back to the days of Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan—all while ceding our economic future to China. We’re going to fight this unconstitutional attack on California in court.”
California Attorney General Rob Bonta said: “With these votes, Senate Republicans are bending the knee to President Trump once again. The weaponization of the Congressional Review Act to attack California’s waivers is just another part of the continuous, partisan campaign against California’s efforts to protect the public and the planet from harmful pollution. As we have said before, this reckless misuse of the Congressional Review Act is unlawful, and California will not stand idly by. We need to hold the line on strong emissions standards and keep the waivers in place, and we will sue to defend California’s waivers.”
Senator Adam Schiff said the votes should “send a chill down the spine of legislators in every state.”
“What we have at stake is a state’s ability, it’s right to make its own laws and to protect its own citizens, without having this body overturn that right,” Schiff said.
Senator Elissa Slotkin said she has a “special responsibility to stand up for the more than one million Michiganders whose livelihoods depend on the U.S. auto industry.”
John Bozzella, CEO of the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, said: “The fact is these EV sales mandates were never achievable. In reality, meeting the mandates would require diverting finite capital from the EV transition to purchase compliance credits from Tesla.”
Earthjustice President Abigail Dillen said: “While our Republican leaders may try to put the horse back in the barn when it comes to electric vehicles, the world has already shifted under their feet.”
What Happens Next
The measure overturning the rule now heads to the White House, where Trump is expected to sign it—along with two other resolutions that block California rules curbing tailpipe emissions and smog-forming nitrogen oxide pollution from trucks.
The post Gavin Newsom Defies Senate Vote: ‘Illegal’ appeared first on Newsweek.
