A battle over the future of U.S. clean car standards just stepped up a gear. We sit down with the woman leading the charge against Trump to keep more stringent fuel economy rules in place.

Mary Nichols is currently on her second tour as chair of the California Air Resources Board. Arguably no single individual has done more to advance the Golden State’s pioneering — and bipartisan — effort to clean up its air and combat climate change.

In this episode, we get the backstory on California’s effort to block the Trump administration’s proposal to freeze federal fuel economy standards and rescind the state's ability to set its own rules (17:10).

We also hear about the “dark forces” attempting to stall electric vehicle growth, and how California overcame political polarization to enact some of the nation’s most progressive climate policies.

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