Military experts are raising national security concerns over the Biden administration's electric vehicle agenda, warning the president's ambitious policy push will make the U.S. too dependent on China.
A coalition of 17 retired military officials, including retired Navy Captain Bob "Shoebob" Carey, sent a letter this week to President Biden and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), warning regulatory initiatives aimed at incentivizing EV adoption "intensify America’s vulnerability to political interference by the Chinese Communist Party."
Carey told "America's Newsroom" Friday that the aggressive push is "fundamentally wrong" and makes the U.S. reliant on our "biggest potential enemy."
"In order to be able to make these electric vehicles operate the way they need to, you need lithium, you need gallium, and you need a lot of other rare earth minerals that we don't have, we can't process. And we'll basically allow the Chinese to control the flow of that in order to for us to be able to have those vehicles on our roads," Carey said.
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According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), China produces about 75% of all lithium-ion batteries, a key component of EVs, worldwide. The nation also boasts 70% of production capacity for cathodes and 85% for anodes, two key parts of such batteries.
The letter took particular issue with the EPA's April 2023 proposal to implement the most aggressive tailpipe emissions regulations ever crafted. If finalized and implemented, a staggering 67% of new sedan, crossover, SUV and light truck; up to 50% of bus and garbage truck; 35% of short-haul freight tractor; and 25% of long-haul freight tractor purchases could be electric by 2032, the EPA projected.
The White House said at the time that increasing emissions standards for gas-powered cars would indirectly incentivize the adoption of zero-emission vehicles and provide a "clear pathway for a continued rise in EV sales." Biden previously set a goal of ensuring 50% of car purchases are electric by 2030.
"You don't make transitions like this by taking away fossil fuel cars, internal combustion engines. And the way this regulation is being put forward, it's being done by limiting how much the tailpipe emissions can be, which is going to not make us any more capable of handling electric vehicles while taking away those internal combustion engines," Carey explained.
The retired captain noted that while the coalition is not against electric vehicles becoming a part of the American fabric, the concern lies with the rate at which the Biden administration wants to implement them into society.
"There is no doubt EVs will play a significant role in diversifying America’s transportation systems. Yet we believe your plans will rush our transition to EVs before the infrastructure necessary to support it is in place," the letter stated.
Carey said the goal of the letter is to raise visibility of "how bad this regulation is" and put public pressure on the EPA.
"The public is saying, you have a solution that's in search of a problem that doesn't exist right now, but you're going to make a lot worse problems that are going to make driving a lot more expensive for Americans and a lot less reliable. Then [the EPA] may start to listen."
The EPA didn't respond to a request for comment to "America's Newsroom" or Fox News Digital.
Fox News' Thomas Catenacci contributed to this report.
