If you point your ear towards Washington, D.C. today and hear nary a peep, it may be because the Trump administration has discretely dropped its antitrust investigation of the State of California’s agreement with four major automakers in regards to clean emissions standards.

However, 2,722 miles away in Sacramento, California, Governor Gavin Newman is having a good laugh. “These trumped up charges were always a sham — a blatant attempt by the Trump administration to prevent more automakers from joining California and agreeing to stronger emissions standards,” he said.

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“The only way to really reduce greenhouse gas emissions as opposed to these other traditional pollutants is to either switch the technology or get very high gas standards,” said Deborah Sivas, director of Stanford Law School’s Environmental Law Clinic.

“So the way these standards get set is kind of on a rolling five-year basis, so that the auto industry can plan its production for the next five years. We had this big deal, and during the 2012 to ’16/’17 period, standards ramped up very slowly. But then they’re supposed to ramp up very quickly. By 2025, we’re supposed to get close to 55 miles per gallon (mpg) as the corporate fuel economy standards.”