Democrats’ green agenda could gift Midwest to Trump

The Midwest will decide who wins the White House in November. Much has been written about Kamala Harris’s not-so-subtle appeal to Michigan’s Muslim voters, and her choice of Tim Walz as running mate rounds the ticket out with a Minnesota governor who once praised an extremist Muslim cleric as a “master teacher”.

But away from the cheap tactics of identity politics — which will only fly with so many Midwesterners — Harris and Walz may have more trouble convincing the region of their environmental and industrial policies.

Over the last few months, the drive towards an all-electric auto industry has crashed against technological and economic realities. Electric vehicle mandates, which demand that EVs constitute roughly 70% of all car sales by 2032 (up from 7% today) are extremely ambitious.