This was not what the Biden admin saw coming. They just got smacked across the face.
Because Senate Democrats just called Joe Biden “pathetic” in wild turn of events in Congressional Hearing.
Election years are fun because you can always see how politicians are easily tossed by the slightest political winds that their campaigns feel. It’s sad really, but it’s simply true that few politicians in Washington, D.C. have any backbone at all to speak of. Even fewer remain when they are seeking re-election.
What’s interesting this time around is that Democrats are eating their own because they have no idea what to do about the fact that Joe Biden is incredibly politically toxic. Yet, the Democrat National Committee (DNC) is continuing to voice their undying support for the aging and unpopular Joe Biden.
So you have a situation where some Democrats are trying to distance themselves from Joe Biden and the Democrat establishment, and that bloc of Democrats is only growing as Americans are souring more and more on the job Joe Biden and company have done while they’ve been in power over the last few years.
U.S. Senators, in particular, try to really play the political balance game because they don’t want to be pinned down on anything. They have a real reputation around Washington, D.C. for being the slimiest fish in the sea. A reputation that is well-earned, if you ask us.
All that to preface the shocking display we saw recently at a U.S. Senate hearing during which the Biden administration was described as “pathetic” for failing to accomplish anything at all on their own agenda.
Biden Administration Gets Embarrassed; Democrats Call Infrastructure Efforts “Pathetic”
During a Senate Committee on the Environment and Public Works hearing on Wednesday, Democratic Senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon confronted a Biden administration official over the slow progress of a federal program aimed at building electric vehicle (EV) charging stations. The program, which is part of the bipartisan infrastructure law, has allocated $7.5 billion for the construction of these stations, according to a White House fact sheet.
Senator Merkley directed his questions to Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) Administrator Shailen Bhatt, seeking updates on the initiative. “The infrastructure bill funded 500,000, as you put it, charging ports,” Merkley said. “How many of those charging ports have been deployed?”
Bhatt’s response highlighted the sluggish advancement: “Some of the Bipartisan Infrastructure funds, yes, so six states have deployed… funds. I’ll say it’s dozens of ports, so like, under 100.”
According to AutoWeek, only eight charging stations have been constructed using the infrastructure law funds signed by President Joe Biden in November 2021. Merkley further scrutinized Bhatt by referencing figures mentioned by “Face the Nation” host Margaret Brennan during a May 26 interview with Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg. Merkley remarked, “I’ve heard only seven,” to which Bhatt concurred. Merkley then expressed his frustration, stating, “That is pathetic.”
Dem Senator Rips Biden Official Over Sluggish Rollout Of Key EV Program pic.twitter.com/Ldj1dhJ8Jo
— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) June 5, 2024
The discussion also touched on the broader context of the Biden administration’s push for EV adoption. The Inflation Reduction Act, signed into law in August 2022, includes a $7,500 tax credit for EVs and enforces strict regulations on light, medium, and heavy-duty vehicles to encourage the transition to electric power.
Merkley emphasized the critical issue of charging infrastructure availability, arguing that the lack of charging stations undermines the reliability of electric vehicles. “You can’t really depend on an electric car if there isn’t a charging capability,” he said. “The fact that we passed this bill years ago and not one charging station has been built in my state, and only seven, as you put it, seven sites around the country, that is a vast administrative failure.”
So let’s get this straight. The Biden administration earmarks billions of dollars for infrastructure that they say we need, and that alone will be a price tag much higher than necessary considering the federal government is never monetarily efficient in any sense of the term.
Not only that, but the money is spent and they don’t even know how to get the ball going on building the infrastructure they so desperately want? What degree of incompetence is that? One completely new to a Presidential administration in modern American history.
As noted, there’s supposed to be half-a-million new charging ports, and surely that’s going to take time. That’s all fine and dandy, but the latest reports are that there’s been just six or so charging ports to show for this money being spent. At best, there are a few dozen to speak of.
The radical Left wants to push this scientifically dubious “green” future onto Americans and yet they don’t even know how to accomplish the infrastructure goals they’ve set for themselves. What a disgrace.
Stay tuned to the DC Daily Journal.
