Democrats

The general political attitudes taken by the left and right in the US are, sadly, divided on the issue of fuel efficient vehicles. Broadly speaking, Republicans dislike the whole idea (even going to absurd extremes like Newt Gingrich saying that inflating your tires helps Big Oil<

With the U.S. mid-term elections over and control of the House of Representatives shifting over to Republican control, it's worth trying to figure out what the legislative future holds for plug-in vehicle support. The short answer, as best we can tell: it's complicated, but there are still a lot of people who want to see plug-ins on the road. Here are a few things to keep in mind:

Rescue, bailout, whatever you want to call it, the bill that would shovel about $15 billion in gov't loans to General Motors and Chrysler is being finalized as we speak. The stumbling block between Congressional Democrats and the White House has been the breadth of power that will be given to a Bush-appointed Car Czar and whether or not automakers will be able to continue their legal fight against the state of California, 17 other states and the EPA over stricter emissions standards.

Wow, what an amazing piece of political theater that just went down. As we reported, four senators from auto producing state (two Democrats and two Republicans) led by Michigan Senator Carl Levin have reached an agreement on a compromise bailout bill for automakers. They were set to announce details of the compromise bill at 2:30PM, but before they could, a team of Congressional Demo

Based on what most of our presidential candidates have said so far, it's too early to tell what sets them apart. So if we can't learn anything from what they say, maybe we can glean ideas on their governance from what they drive. Of thirteen candidates noted, seven Democrats have nine cars, and six Republicans also have nine cars. Of those 18 cars, five are hybrids -- three of them domestic hybrids. There are 7 SUV's (well, 6 and a Jeep Wrangler). Mitt Romney, estim

The political alliances in the Motor City have historically been rather black-and-white, with the UAW lining up alongside Democrats and management favoring the Republicans. Yes, one can find exception to these stereotypes, but the above comes as close as one can to describing 40-some years of voting behavior in one sentence. But the times are changing, and traditional alliances between the political parties and their supporters in the auto industry are increasingly