Under CEO and Chair Mary Barra, General Motors has pushed its unprofitable electric vehicle strategy at the expense of its internal combustion and hybrid vehicles. President Trump’s newly-signed “Big Beautiful Bill” terminates all federal EV tax credits starting in the fall, wiping out subsidies that Detroit had treated as a lifeline for unprofitable battery-powered cars. The policy shift is already reshaping the global market. According to the Wall Street Journal:
The bill will quickly end subsidies of up to $7,500 for purchasing or leasing an electric vehicle, denying the credit for purchases after Sept. 30. That poses a challenge for automakers—from Tesla and Ford to BMW and Hyundai—that are already struggling to sell EVs in the U.S., where they have stalled at about 8% of the new-car market.
Meanwhile, also according to the Journal:
“Chinese homegrown brands’ exports will see significant growth in the next few years, and the U.S. bill should give China greater room to develop in overseas markets,” said Cui Dongshu, the secretary-general of the China Passenger Car Association, on Tuesday.
The warning is stark: Chinese brands exported nearly one million EVs in the first half of 2025—up 48 percent year-on-year—just as U.S. buyers prepare to lose their tax break. With Washington yanking the training wheels off EV demand and Beijing flooding world markets with subsidized models, the economics for General Motors’ battery strategy look worse than ever.
At GM’s 2024 annual meeting, NLPC sponsored a proposal that asked the board of directors to eliminate EV-production goals from executive compensation incentives, arguing that “EVs are unpopular and unprofitable, even with extensive subsidies.” Management opposed the measure, and investors sided with the board.
But with federal credits expiring and Chinese rivals ready to undercut prices, the logic behind NLPC’s resolution looks prescient. Moving forward, GM should 1) Reconsider further EV capital spending until the company can demonstrate positive, subsidy-free unit economics, 2) Restore emphasis on profitable internal-combustion and hybrid models that American consumers still demand—especially trucks and SUVs, and 3) Retool executive incentives to reward free-cash-flow generation and market-share gains in core segments, not headline battery-car output.
Washington just confirmed that the EV gravy train is over. The communists in Beijing are poised to exploit the gap, deploying their own subsidies that will catch up with them sooner or later.
Shareholders can’t afford to watch GM double-down on a business line that bleeds red ink without taxpayer help. NLPC will continue to press the board to abandon “zero-emission” vanity projects and return to fiduciary basics.
