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What's in your driveway?

By: Anne Schroeder Mullins, Politico - 7/7/2009

Several weeks ago, Republican image consultant Brian Kirwin received a curious request from a state elected official. The official had always wanted to buy a Ford Mustang, but he was concerned that its flash might turn off voters still slogging their way through the worst recession in a generation. “Is this going to look bad?” Kirwin recalled the official asking. Perhaps a more modest set of wheels like the fuel-efficient Ford Fusion — which can get up to 47 miles per gallon — might be a better choice?

From his office in Virginia, Kirwin told him to spring for the Mustang. After all, the lawmaker was well-liked in his district, so even if the new ride did irk a few voters, it wouldn’t be enough to derail his future. “Public service shouldn’t keep you from buying the car you’ve always wanted,” Kirwin said.

Adding automotive decisions into the political calculus isn’t just for state lawmakers. With the collapse of the American auto industry and energy independence emerging as a leading issue in Washington, members of Congress are growing increasingly sensitive to what their car says about them.

Rep. Dale Kildee (D-Mich.), hailing from the state that has felt the brunt of the auto industry’s pain, won’t issue parking passes to his own staff members unless they drive a car sanctioned by the United Auto Workers. “As a representative from Flint, Mich., the birthplace of General Motors, I drive an American car because I want to support the American worker, and I expect my staff to do the same,” says Kildee, who has proudly driven his made-in-Flint Buick LaSabre for years. “If I walk into the office of a member from Florida, I would not expect to see oranges from Brazil in a big bowl there.”

Other members of the Michigan delegation have similar outlooks. Rep. Thad McCotter, a member of the Republican Study Committee, drives a Dodge Intrepid and also owns a Dodge minivan. He says via e-mail that he’s “never owned anything but American/Michigan cars/vans.” Michigan Dem heavyweight Rep. John Dingell can be seen in D.C. behind the wheel of a Chevy Malibu and in Michigan driving a Ford Escape Hybrid.

With the dual message of environmental sensitivity and energy independence, hybrid vehicles have grown increasingly popular on Capitol Hill. Sens. Bob Bennett (R-Utah), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.) all drive the Ford Escape Hybrid. For Isakson, that fits well into his political spectrum. “Ford describes this car as a ‘no-compromise hybrid’ that offers a federal tax break. That sounds about right for a libertarian-leaning conservative,” says conservative pundit and strategist Karen Hanretty.

Driving a Prius hybrid may be the only thing Sen. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, the chairman of the Senate Republican Conference, and Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) have in common. Alexander even converted his to be a plug-in electric car.

Democratic consultant and former Senate staffer David DiMartino points out: “I’m sure the motivation for driving [a hybrid] is environmental, not political, but it’s smart to do if you’ve been out there advocating that others reduce their carbon footprint.”

Greenie Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) drives a Chevy Tahoe Hybrid, but it was the decision of Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) to purchase a Ford Fusion Hybrid that turned the most heads. “John McCain buying a Ford Fusion means ‘American Idol’ has won. Never thought I’d see the day,” says Hanretty.

But Kirwin argues that the conversion of a “drill, baby, drill” presidential nominee to a fuel-efficient automobile owner isn’t as radical as it might seem. “Politicians use their choice of car as defense,” he says. “Republicans will say, ‘Drill, drill, drill!’ and then have an energy-efficient car. Democrats will be almost on the other side. They’ll have a really expensive, almost gas-guzzling car, but they’ll back it up by saying, ‘Look at my policy initiatives’ and they’ll use that as a way of saying, ‘Don’t worry about my car because in the bigger picture I’m fighting to get us off of foreign oil.’”

To be sure, plenty of politicians in Washington seem to drive the car they like. Longtime Sens. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) drive Cadillacs. “No one is going to give you heartache in New Jersey for driving a Cadillac,” Kirwin said.

Rep. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) has a Ford Explorer. When in his home state of New York, Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel, a Democrat, drives a Cadillac, which brought him some heat last year. When in D.C., he uses his Chrysler PT Cruiser — as does House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman James Oberstar (D-Minn.). And then there’s Sen. Max Baucus (D-Mont.), chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, who drives a foreign car: a 2003 BMW.

House Ways and Means Committee ranking member Dave Camp of Michigan is still driving what he drove out to D.C. when he was first elected in 1990: a Pontiac Grand Am. “If all Republicans were this frugal,” Hanretty says with a laugh, “we might still control Congress.”

The 1995 Buick Park Avenue owned by House Budget Committee Chairman John Spratt (D-S.C.) has more than 200,000 miles on it and fits his budget hawkishness. Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) drives a Lincoln Town Car. Rep. Shelley Berkley (D-Nev.) drives a Smart Car, and Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) drives a Chevy pickup truck. Rep. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee chairman, loves his 2003 Ford Taurus.

Although Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) doesn’t own a hybrid, he does his part to reduce gasoline emissions by coasting the last mile or so when he’s on the gravel roads around his farm. His cars include a 2003 Ford Taurus (with 88,000 miles on it), a 1998 Ford Lincoln Continental (65,000 miles) and a 1996 Lincoln (95,000). All three were bought used.

If there were an award for the ultimate gas saver on Capitol Hill, it would shared by two frugal members, one from each party: Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.) and Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.). Blumenauer, who eschews driving a car as much as he can, is so emphatic about his bicycle that he’s known to say that he loves burning calories instead of petroleum. And Burr, who famously tools around Washington in a budget-friendly 1974 VW Thing, doesn’t burn much fuel either. “The Thing is a reliable, fuel-efficient car that gets up to 40 miles per gallon,” Burr says. “I have been driving it for over 19 years now and only have to fill up about three times a year. I would never trade this clunker for cash. It exceeds even the new administration’s target fuel economy goals.”