The Electric: Manchin Uses a Threat to EV Tax Credits to Fight the Battery War His Way

For the last three weeks, U.S. buyers of electric cars have been eligible for a $7,500 tax credit, courtesy of the climate law passed by Congress last year. Now the senator most responsible for the credits, angry over how the Biden administration is implementing the law, is threatening to take them away and possibly force consumers who have received payouts to give them back. 

On Wednesday, Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) unveiled a bill that could temporarily halt the EV subsidies. But the bill seemed less intended as a potential new law than a shot across the administration’s bow. A Manchin aide told reporters Tuesday evening that the senator had not sought any co-sponsors, a step ordinarily taken to create momentum for legislation.