CCalifornia just picked a Chinese company for its electric buses, and a post on X says Newsom chose them over Tesla and Rivian.
MOver Tesla and Rivian? They don't make buses.
CJames Croft posted on X, basically saying Newsom would rather give electric vehicle contracts to Chinese BYD than Musk's Tesla or Rivian. He added, make that make sense.
MHere's what actually happened. California's Department of General Services put BYD motor coaches on a statewide purchasing contract. Those are heavy-duty transit buses.
MTesla and Rivian don't compete in that category. They don't build motor coaches. So the whole framing is off.
COkay, fair. It's not a direct pick over Tesla. But why are California tax dollars going to a Chinese company with ties to Beijing?
MBecause BYD builds those coaches in Lancaster, California, with union labor. That's not outsourcing. It's a factory in the state.
CThis is the same BYD that got a no-bid mask contract from Newsom in 2020, almost a billion dollars. And Newsom toured their charging depot in Shenzhen in 2023. He was literally in one of their electric buses.
MThe Shenzhen trip was to see how a city runs a hundred percent zero-emission bus and taxi fleet. And the mask contract was a pandemic emergency. Separate thing.
CStill, it's a pattern. California lectures everyone about clean energy, then buys from a Chinese state-backed company.
MIt's not a lecture. California has a zero-emission bus mandate. Transit agencies need electric buses now. BYD already has a union factory here.
CSo why didn't an American company get that contract? We have domestic bus makers.
MThey could bid. The statewide contract is open. But BYD likely undercut on price, or the others couldn't scale. I don't have the bid details.
CAnd that's my problem. A Chinese company undercuts, gets a foothold, and then dominates. It's the same playbook as solar panels.
MSolar panels are already dominated by China. And California buys them because they're cheap. Should we pay triple for American panels just to feel good?
CIf it keeps the money here and doesn't enrich the Chinese Communist Party? Yes.
MOh, come on. You want taxpayers to pay triple while the state budget is a mess? That's not free market, that's protectionism.
CProtectionism isn't a dirty word when the other side is a state-owned enterprise trying to destroy your industry!
MBYD isn't destroying the American bus industry. Proterra went bankrupt for its own reasons. This contract creates American jobs in Lancaster.
CUnion jobs at a Chinese-owned factory still send profits back to Shenzhen.
MThey also pay wages and taxes here. And Washington rolled back federal EV policy, so California is looking for cheaper options. That's the environment we're in.
CExactly! That's my point. Now Sacramento is turning to Beijing. It's a self-inflicted wound.
MNo, it's a bus contract. You're making it sound like they handed over California's whole fleet to China. These are motor coaches for transit agencies, not Teslas in every driveway.
CYou don't think it sends a message? California, home of Tesla, buying Chinese EVs while Musk is off in Texas? That's embarrassing.
MMusk moved Tesla to Texas. That was his call. And Tesla doesn't make transit buses. If they did, maybe they'd be in the running. This is about what's actually available.
CI just don't like American taxpayer money going to a company controlled by the Chinese Communist Party.
MFair. But the buses are assembled here by American workers. And Dan Sperling, a former California Air Resources Board member, says the state should seriously look at small numbers of Chinese EVs.
CDan Sperling. He's been around forever. I get it, they're cheaper. But you don't solve a federal policy gap by buying from China.
MMaybe you do if the goal is clean air and there's no domestic alternative at that price. I'd rather the money stay here too, but the contract is legal and it's built in Lancaster.
CI still don't like it. But I'll grant you the post overstated it. Newsom didn't pick BYD over Tesla and Rivian. He didn't pick them at all.
MRight. And that's what people should know before they rage-share.
MSpeaking of EV rankings, USA Today Cars posted that Rivian is now the second most popular EV brand behind Tesla.
CI saw that. I've seen Rivians everywhere lately. The R2 is finally hitting volume.
MI checked, and I'm not seeing full-year numbers that back that up.
CBut Ford and Chevy are pulling back on EVs, right? Maybe Rivian has momentum in 2026.
MMomentum yes, but actual sales numbers? Not yet. The post cites 2026 data that I can't find.
CMaybe it's projected? USA Today Cars usually reports on data.
MIf it's projected, they should say projected. Otherwise it's misleading.
CI'll say this: Rivian's the only American EV maker besides Tesla with a real brand. I wouldn't be shocked if they get there.
MCould be. Just don't put them second until the numbers do.