Growing trend: public officials held accountable for their vehicle choices

[MetroMPG]

Hollywood has known for years now that vehicle choice is part and parcel of public image.

Quick: name three celebrities who drive Priuses? (Probably didn't take you very long, did it?)

Public attention is starting to shift more and more onto the vehicle choices of public officials as well, particularly those officials which claim to support the various causes one would associate with efficiency or reduced dependence on automobiles as a solution.

It's not entirely new, but it's a growing phenomenon. EG:

The Mercury News: San Jose city officials drive gas guzzlers

San Jose has its "green vision," a sweeping 10-point plan to make the city a leader in environmental stewardship. But do city leaders drive the talk?

No. At least not yet.

Mayor Chuck Reed and the 10 city council members are all still driving conventional gasoline-slurping cars. Hey, aren't we supposed to become "Green Valley?"

This one particularly takes the cake:

LA Times (via LAist): Should the City's Top Transit Dude Drive a Hummer?

Back in May of last year, [LA Times'] Steve Hymon rounded up who drives Hummers at City Hall and found that the city's Transportation Deputy for the Mayor drives a Hummer H3. ...

He has the right to drive to work, but Lopez is correct that Mr. Transit in a Hummer is like "having a surgeon general who smokes unfiltered Camels while snacking on Cheetos."

I've seen (but haven't read) articles about what vehicles are owned/driven by the various candidates in the race for the top Dem & Republican jobs.

This kind of scrutiny is only going to escalate. Do you know what kind of vehicle the person you last voted for drives? Do you care?

[Peakster]

I know my Canadian MLA (Ralph Goodale) for my area drives a Jeep Liberty.

[MetroMPG]

The federal member here drives an Explorer. I seen 'im!

[Peakster]

Oh really? I thought you said at one time he drove something even worse: an Excursion!

And to answer the 'do I care' part of your question: Not really. I mean the bigger vehicle they have, the more fuel tax they pay . I'd probably be all about SUVs if they didn't make me cash poor.

[trebuchet03]

It'd be good to know what type of vehicle - and the source....

I'd have less of an issue if the car was seized - but only slightly less...

[Frank Lee]

Originally Posted by Peakster

And to answer the 'do I care' part of your question: Not really. I mean the bigger vehicle they have, the more fuel tax they pay . I'd probably be all about SUVs if they didn't make me cash poor.

Are you serious?

That is a huge disappointment. :sad:

[Peakster]

It's true. I was dangerously close to buying a Jeep Grand Cherokee instead of the Geo. I'm convinced that 2 tons of steel, luxury, and 4x4 makes me sedated. The only reason I didn't buy it was because my dad pointed out that the passenger side door was a slight color off from the rest of the truck (indicating is was probably in an accident). If I had bought that truck, I probably would have never found this website. Fate is scary.

[Who]

Peakster, wow, you're here playing to your strength of a high mpg vehicle and I'm here addressing my weakness of buying a lead sled barn door exacerbated by the fact that Hyundai doesn't sell diesels here.

[WaxyChicken]

Here are the presidential Hopefuls:

Originally Posted by CarAndDriver.com

Article
Have you heard? Can you believe it? What a dirty politician! Barack Obama, Illinois senator and presidential hopeful, comes to Detroit and blasts automakers about the need to build more-fuel-efficient cars and then drives off in his personal Chrysler 300C?
...
...
Hillary Clinton
Wheels: Secret Service transportation or husband’s Mercury Mariner hybrid
Output: 155 hp, 124 lb-ft (Mariner hybrid)
EPA fuel economy, city/highway: 34/30 (29/27 4WD) (Mariner hybrid)
..
...
John Edwards, Al Gore
Wheels: Ford Escape hybrid
Output: 155 hp, 124 lb-ft
EPA fuel economy, city/highway: 34/30 (29/27 4WD)
...
...
John McCain
Wheels: Cadillac CTS
Output: 255 hp, 252 lb-ft
EPA fuel economy, city/highway: 17–18/26–27
...
...
Barack Obama
Wheels: Chrysler 300C
Output: 340 hp, 390 lb-ft
EPA fuel economy, city/highway: 17/25 (17/24 AWD)
...
...
Mitt Romney
Wheels: Ford Mustang GT, Cadillac SRX, Chevrolet Silverado
Output: Too much horsepower, too much torque
Too little fuel economy
...
...

Despite Obama apparently not taking the environmental issues serious, i still prefer him to Clinton.

[cfg83]

Peakster -

Originally Posted by Peakster

It's true. I was dangerously close to buying a Jeep Grand Cherokee instead of the Geo. I'm convinced that 2 tons of steel, luxury, and 4x4 makes me sedated. The only reason I didn't buy it was because my dad pointed out that the passenger side door was a slight color off from the rest of the truck (indicating is was probably in an accident). If I had bought that truck, I probably would have never found this website. Fate is scary.

Before the term "SUV" existed, I liked the Jeep Comanche. I mostly liked it from an aesthetic standpoint. But, I could never justify it while living in an urban environment.

CarloSW2