- Manchin seems to be growing more skeptical of Biden's key target on electric vehicles.
- "I have grave concerns about moving too quickly towards an EV-only future," he said at a panel hearing.
- Democrats hope to win over his vote on a smaller social and climate bill in the next few weeks.
Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia raised fresh concerns this week about phasing out gas-powered cars in favor of electric vehicles, potentially dealing a blow to a major Democratic climate goal and setting up another hurdle for Democrats trying to win over his vote on a smaller clean energy and healthcare bill.
"I have grave concerns about moving too quickly towards an EV-only future," the conservative Democrat said at a Senate Energy panel hearing on Thursday.
Manchin said he backed the production of more EVs to cut harmful emissions. But he threw cold water on a swift transition, citing China's current dominance on producing minerals that power EV batteries. "They have simply cornered the market," he said.
Last year, President Joe Biden laid out a goal for half of all new cars sold to be electric-powered by 2030. But Manchin seems to believe that's an unattainable target in the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. He has urged the Biden administration to accelerate domestic energy production at the same time, calling it an "all of the above approach."
"It is frustrating to hear calls for a swifter transition to electrified transportation to reduce our dependence on foreign oil," he said. "We cannot replace one unreliable foreign supply chain with another and think it's going to solve our problems."
It's not the first time Manchin has been publicly skeptical about the federal government getting involved with the production of electric vehicles. Last month, the conservative Democrat said he didn't want to be "standing in line waiting for a battery" and raised fears of shortages.
His office didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.
Democrats hope to negotiate with Manchin on a scaled-down version of their Build Back Better plan in the next few weeks. He put a dagger in it at the end of last year and Democrats can't approve the plan on party-lines without his vote.
The defunct House legislation contained up to $12,500 in tax credits designed to reduce the cost of buying an electric vehicle, which still tend to be expensive. Manchin came out last fall against a $4,500 credit for union-made vehicles, arguing it penalizes automakers with non-union workforces.
On Tuesday, Manchin at an energy conference said he "will not sign up" for a major EV push. At the same event, he expressed unease with where new revenue from EV charging stations would be directed.
"You don't think that those charging stations, once we build them with taxpayer dollars, are going to be free, do you?" Manchin said, per the Washington Examiner. "Who's going to get the revenue?"