Another casualty in the war on Obama

Oct 16, 1999
10,490
4
0
http://www.huffingtonpost.com////ch...klash_n_1392742.html?ref=politics&ir=Politics

Conservatives love to hate the Chevy Volt. The plug-in advanced hybrid car seems to annoy Republicans, Tea Partiers and Libertarians alike.

Then this week, one conservative went rogue. Lee Spieckerman, owner of SpieckermanMedia in Fort Worth, Texas, went on Fox News to say the Volt could be an important tool in boosting U.S. energy production and foreign policy efforts.

"There are probably 10 inventions over the past 150 years that were life changing for Americans, and I think the Volt has the potential to be one of those things," he told The Huffington Post. "I mean, a car that runs on American electricity derived from American sources. What will those crazy lefties think of next?"

He joined a wave of backlash within conservative groups against those in their political party who despise the Chevy Volt because of its perceived ties to President Barack Obama. The pushback started with a column a few weeks ago in Forbes magazine written by former General Motors board member and climate-change denier Bob Lutz, who said, "I am, sadly, coming to the conclusion that all the icons of conservatism are ... deliberately not telling the truth."

But it may be too late to save the Volt's image: Sales have been disappointing, selling just 7,671 in 2011, shy of its 10,000 goal. Many have argued that the Volt's sticker price is too high, but the constant hammering of negativity from the political right surely can't be helping sales. Disappointing sales figures prompted GM to close the Volt plant in Hamtramck, Mich., for five weeks starting in mid March. And a major auto industry conference on electric cars was canceled Wednesday due to lack of interest.
...

You only have to take a look at Fox News to see how much disdain there is for GM's hybrid sedan. Lutz said he heard one Fox commentator call it an "exploding Obamamobile." The station aired a segment that claimed it ran out of power in the Lincoln Tunnel (it kicked over to gas power during the commute, as it's designed to do), and has said again and again that the car doesn't work, isn't worth the money, and costs taxpayers $250,000 per car in government subsidies.

Spieckerman, a lifelong conservative and sometimes commentator on Fox News, said he kept hearing this message about the Volt being the worst car on the road, and just couldn't take it anymore. He called producers at Fox News and asked if he could have some time on air defending the car. He wanted to explain why the car, and other cars like it, could actually advance many conservative ideals, like energy independence.

He appeared Monday, starting off his appearance telling viewers he loves oil and is a "drill baby drill guy." But then he said conservatives are twisting the facts, making it seem like a debacle when electric cars could really be considered a technology as cool as the iPod.

When the Volt is powered by the battery, the car is often running on American-made coal-powered electricity, he said. What's wrong with that?

Although his message caused a bit of a dust-up, resulting in dozens of news stories and blog posts pointing out how Fox News is now contradicting itself, he's planning on sending it again and again.

"I'll shout it from the rooftop of my house if I have to," Spieckerman told The Huffington Post. "I'll go anywhere to pound this message, because I think it's really important."

Spieckerman said he believes electric cars and plug-in hybrids like the Chevy Volt are vital to the nation's future, allowing the country to wean itself off oil and use homegrown fuel sources like coal, nuclear and natural gas to power electricity plants, which then would power cars. If you could do that while also expanding the production of oil in the U.S., he thinks that could even push down gas prices.

But he said he knows why many conservatives hate the Volt: Because Obama likes it.

"Almost anything President Obama and his administration endorses is up for criticism," he said. "But we have to decouple politics from what a great technology this is for America … If the environmentalists and Obama like the Volt, so what? Even a stopped clock is right twice a day."

It might be hard to change conservative minds, especially when the message is already so entrenched. On Wednesday, the Center for Automotive Research canceled its annual industry conference on plug-in cars, saying speakers and other participants said they decided to focus less on networking and more on quietly building their technology behind closed doors.

Poor Volt, we hardly knew you. Maybe if you came with factory installed "Don't Re-Nig 2012" bumper stickers and optional coal-burning climate control you'd get better treatment from the right.
 

Zebo

Elite Member
Jul 29, 2001
39,398
19
81
Because it's stupid. You can buy a similar cruze and gas to run for 10-20 years for price of volt.
 

cybrsage

Lifer
Nov 17, 2011
13,021
0
0
The cost to benefit ratio only ever appealed to liberals. Why didn't you all run out to buy one?
 

cybrsage

Lifer
Nov 17, 2011
13,021
0
0
The cost to benefit isn't what is being attacked by the right. It's an exploding Obamamobile. And these aren't liberals defending it.

Said that by some random person who claims to have heard someone at Fox call it that some time...

Yeah...pretty convincing... :rolleyes:
 

Fern

Elite Member
Sep 30, 2003
26,907
173
106
Lame attempt to try and blame the Volt's failure on something other than the Volt.

The Volt is failing because of a vast right-wing conspiracy.

Tin foil stuff IMO.

Fern
 

glenn1

Lifer
Sep 6, 2000
25,383
1,013
126
The cost to benefit ratio only ever appealed to liberals. Why didn't you all run out to buy one?

Because liberals believed that conservatives are stupid so they'd be the obvious core market for what is self-obviously a vastly inferior product to its peers like the Prius, and are now pissed that they might have buy the pieces of shit instead.
 

Double Trouble

Elite Member
Oct 9, 1999
9,272
103
106
So if a conservative says the volt sucks, it's because they are evil conservatives and hate Obama. If a conservative says the volt is wonderful, it's obviously because he's absolutely right and truthful and correct. :rolleyes:

Gotta love the tinfoil hat nuttery, now it's the vast right wing that made the volt overpriced, that made consumer reports pan it, and made it generally inferior to other products much less expensive. The fact that it's failing despite a huge $8000 subsidy is telling.

Oh, and comparing a volt to an ipod or something "cool" like that is devoid of logic. I might buy a gadget for the "cool" factor, but I'm not going to buy an inferior car or a car that doesn't meet my needs because it has "cool new" technology. Sorry, it fails on all fronts and the market results reflect it.

Over time GM might get better at it and make it a great product, but right now it's just a lousy buy, and blaming the right wing conspiracy is dumb.
 

Away

Diamond Member
May 1, 2005
4,431
1
71
Yeah, the fact that it's an overpriced POS Chevy has nothing to do with it. :rolleyes:
 

NeoV

Diamond Member
Apr 18, 2000
9,531
2
81
show me a single hybrid or alternative fuel vehicle that the 'right' has approved of in any way, shape or form.......

when your world view is shaped by what political party you belong to first, regardless of which side of the fence you are on, you are looking at things the wrong way.
 

sandorski

No Lifer
Oct 10, 1999
70,085
5,618
126
Given that every Volt has caught on fire, you'd expect to see higher Sales numbers due to replacement...unless, of course, every Volt manufactured also caught on fire. :colbert:
 

monovillage

Diamond Member
Jul 3, 2008
8,444
1
0

I said they dissed it. Notice from your own link.

Consumer Reports now recommends the Volt plug-in hybrid after new data......

They changed their original finding after new data.