What’s a driver to do? California bans gas-powered cars and then says don’t charge electric ones because the power grid can’t handle it.
This may illustrate liberalism in a nutshell.
The operators of California’s power grid are telling residents not to charge their electric cars, just days after the Democratic-run state banned gas-powered vehicles.
On Tuesday, the California Independent System Operator, the nonprofit that manages most of California’s energy system, issued an advisory to its customers warning of “extreme heat that is likely to strain the grid with increased energy demands” through the Labor Day weekend.
Beginning Wednesday, the group said, the “most extensive heat wave in the West so far this year” was set to arrive, driving up temperatures by 10 degrees to 20 degrees throughout the state.
As the advisory noted, “If weather or grid conditions worsen, the ISO may issue a series of emergency notifications to access additional resources and prepare market participants and the public for potential energy shortages and the need to conserve.”
“The power grid operator expects to call on Californians for voluntary energy conservation via Flex alerts over the long weekend,” the ISO statement continued.
“During a Flex Alert, consumers are urged to reduce energy use from 4-9 p.m. when the system is most stressed because demand for electricity remains high and there is less solar energy available.”
The group then identified the “top three conservation actions.”
They include setting thermostats to 78 degrees or higher, avoiding using large appliances and charging electric vehicles, and turning off unnecessary lights.
“Lowering electricity use during that time will ease strain on the system, and prevent more drastic measures, including rotating power outages,” the ISO noted.
The “conservation actions” are to be followed from Aug. 31 to Sept. 6.
Ironically, the power managers are calling for the grid to be partly shut down just a week after the California Air Resources Board voted to ban the sale of gas-powered vehicles by 2035.
By then, all cars, trucks, and SUVs must operate off hydrogen or electricity.
As Republican Rep. Jeff Duncan of South Carolina tweeted in response to the news, “California is on track to phase out gas-powered vehicles in a widespread push to electric vehicles by 2035, yet is warning of blackouts and grid vulnerability. How is the electric grid secure enough to support a population of EVs in just over a decade?”
What’s clear is that thousands of people are fleeing California in droves so they don’t have to find out.
Readers of The Free Press may remember when we reported on California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom used the Fourth of July to try to troll his counterpart in Florida, Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Newsom released a 30-second ad that ran on Fox News and social media on America’s birthday urging liberals in the Sunshine State to “join the fight” against the GOP agenda, or to “join us” in California.
“It’s Independence Day, so let’s talk about what’s going on in America,” Newsom says as the ad starts.
Then, as images of DeSantis and former President Donald Trump flashed on the screen, he adds, “Freedom, it’s under attack in your state. Republican leaders, they’re banning books, making it harder to vote, restricting speech in classrooms, even criminalizing women and doctors.”
“I urge all of you living in Florida to join the fight. Or join us in California, where we still believe in freedom – freedom of speech, freedom to choose, freedom from hate, and the freedom to love,” Newsom continues. “Don’t let them take your freedom.”
But apparently not the freedom to drive your car.
The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Free Press.
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