Introducing the Biden Climate Official Advocating for a ‘Simpler Life’

‘We need to be saved from ourselves,’ Ann ⁣Carlson said before joining Biden admin

The Call for a‍ Simpler Life to Combat Climate Change

The climate⁣ official who‌ spearheaded a Biden administration rule boosting electric vehicles ⁤at the expense of gas-powered cars wants you to live a “simpler‍ life” to combat climate ⁤change, behavior she acknowledges “most people” ⁢will not‍ engage in “unless forced.”

President Joe Biden’s National Highway⁤ Traffic Safety Administration on Friday unveiled ‌new ⁤fuel ‍efficiency standards, ⁢which acting administrator Ann Carlson said ⁤will “reduce⁢ harmful emissions.” Carlson has long stressed the need ‌to force Americans to live climate-friendly lives. As ​an environmental academic at UCLA, for example, Carlson‍ published a 2007 piece titled, “Only by Requiring Lifestyle Changes,” which argued that people‍ would⁤ not reduce their energy consumption⁣ “voluntarily.” As a result, ​Carlson ⁣wrote, the U.S. government ⁢must “induce behavioral change” by implementing policies that ⁢”make the‌ bad behavior more expensive.”

In ​a‍ similar 2009 blog post titled, “Save Us From Ourselves,” ‍Carlson called on Americans to “use less electricity, take more public ⁢transportation, consume less, live more simply and so ⁣on” to fight climate change.⁤ Carlson argued that most people “could‍ benefit from a simpler life” ‍but will‍ not ⁣”engage in dramatic ‌behavioral change unless forced,” highlighting‌ the need for government intervention. “Governments and markets need to take steps to make us pay for‌ the full costs of ⁢the ⁣behaviors in which we engage … they ⁣need to​ limit ‌our infrastructure choices to energy efficient ones,” the ‌Biden administration official wrote. “In‍ other words, we need to be ⁢saved from‍ ourselves.”

Biden’s decision to tap Carlson to⁤ lead its highway administration ‍reflects the administration’s alignment with​ the environmental left’s most militant actors. While Carlson’s agency is traditionally concerned with traffic safety, Carlson privately told her UCLA‌ colleagues that she would use her post to ‌push climate​ policies. “I view my appointment (and a number of others) ‍as evidence that the Biden ‍administration is truly committed ⁣to a ‘whole of government’ approach to addressing climate change,” Carlson wrote.

Carlson subsequently faced criticism ⁣from Republican lawmakers, who derided her as “an environmentalist⁤ without traffic safety experience.” That criticism forced the White House in May to withdraw Carlson’s nomination to lead the National Highway Traffic Safety⁣ Administration, though Carlson still heads the agency‍ as acting administrator, a role she started in September 2022.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration did not ⁣answer questions on Carlson’s past writings ⁤and said the agency’s fuel efficiency standards will “save⁣ American taxpayers thousands of dollars on gas.”

Beyond her writings calling on the U.S. ⁣government to force Americans to lower ⁤their energy ⁣consumption, Carlson⁢ in‍ 2014 said it’s a “huge problem” to rely on​ air conditioning during heat waves, given​ that cranking up the A.C. pumps ​”more greenhouse gasses … into ‌the atmosphere.” In 2011, meanwhile, Carlson ‌ bizarrely linked a rise in temperature to​ more hit batters in Major League Baseball, arguing ⁢that climate change could ⁣therefore wreak “chaos” on the league.

The National‍ Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s proposed fuel efficiency standards aim ⁤to compel automakers to​ ensure two-thirds of the vehicles they⁣ sell are electric‍ by 2032. The agency is not the only federal entity working to achieve⁤ that goal—Biden’s Environmental Protection Agency in April unveiled proposed limits ⁤on tailpipe emissions ⁣that are ⁤also aimed at forcing automakers to sell more ⁢electric cars.

The‍ United Auto Workers, a historically liberal labor union that endorsed ‍Biden in 2020, ⁣has trashed those proposals, arguing that⁢ they will kill jobs and⁤ prompt price hikes. ⁢The Alliance‍ for ⁢Automotive Innovation, a trade group that represents the world’s⁢ top automakers, agrees.

“As ‍proposed, the NPRM standards …​ are neither reasonable‍ nor achievable in ​the timeframe ⁢covered in this proposal,” the alliance said in comments it⁣ sent to the Biden administration in ⁤June. “Auto Innovators does not believe ​they can be met without substantially increasing⁤ the cost of vehicles, reducing consumer choice, ⁣and disadvantaging major portions of⁢ the United States population and territory.”

Biden’s electric vehicle push has not convinced Americans⁢ to purchase the vehicles. Less than one-fifth of‍ Americans say they’re very likely to make their​ next vehicle an electric one, an‌ Associated ​Press poll published‌ in​ April found.