Cruz opposed to gov enforced ethanol carried the state in the 2012 primary.
The money that goes to state politicians, though, comes from the corn/ethanol lobby. Grassley, Ernst, etc. don’t give a rat’s butt about ordinary Iowans.
Caucus, but your point is the same.
Cruz was the only candidate to go to Iowa and openly oppose ethanol subsidies. He was told it was politically suicidal. He won Iowa. That should tell the GOP something, but they have a virtually infinite capacity to learn the wrong lesson from any situation.