Republican Senator Lamar Alexander: buying a Nissan Leaf is "patriotic"

Soon after taking delivery of his shiny black Nissan Leaf (as promised), Tennessee's Lamar Alexander, an outspoken Republican Senator who strongly supports plug-in vehicles, said:

Plugging in my new Leaf will give me the patriotic pleasure of not sending money overseas to people who are trying to blow us up.

Alexander's Leaf was made at Nissan's Oppama facility located in Japan but, beginning in 2012, all Leafs sold here in the States will roll off assembly lines at the automaker's Smyrna, TN site and that's partially the reason why Alexander claims that buying a Leaf is patriotic. The other issue here, according to Alexander, is fueling a vehicle's tank with gasoline shipped in from the Middle East. Here is Alexander's argument:

The Nissan Leaf is easy to drive, it's cheaper to drive – and it will be made in Tennessee. If enough Americans bought electric cars and trucks, that would be the single best way to reduce our dependence on foreign oil – and the best way to avoid $4-a-gallon gas.

For the past two years, the Republican Senator has driven a converted Toyota Prius plug-in. Now, with a Nissan Leaf parked in his drive, Alexander has no need for that imported gasoline.

[Source: Plugin Cars | Image: TalkMediaNews – C.C. License 2.0]