Posted on 05/14/2011 5:45:17 PM PDT by mnehring
Republicans in the House of Representatives are flocking to support a bill to extend and create a number of taxpayer-funded subsidies for manufacturers and buyers of vehicles powered by natural gas. Nearly eighty House Republicans (and a hundred Democrats) have signed up as sponsors of H. R. 1380, the New Alternative Transportation to Give Americans Solutions Act (or NAT GAS Act). Just call it the T. Boone Pickens Earmark Bill.
Many conservative Republicans in the House, particularly a number of new Members with Tea Party connections, have sworn that the fiscal and economic crisis confronting America requires a radical change in federal policies. Out-of-control spending must be stopped; spending earmarks must be abolished; crony capitalists on the prowl for corporate welfare must be sent packing; subsidies for special interests must be abolished; government must stop interfering in the economy and let free markets work.
That big talk doesn’t seem to apply when the spending is being earmarked for a crony capitalist who is one of the biggest contributors to Republican candidates in history–billionaire T. Boone Pickens. Apparently, some subsidies are good if they benefit the right special interests. And government interference in the economy is wonderful if it is done in the name of reducing oil imports.
H. R. 1380 would extend the tax credit of 50 cents per gallon of liquid natural gas (or its equivalent of compressed natural gas) when used for fueling vehicles and provide purchasers of natural gas vehicles with credits ranging from $7,500 to $64,000. The lower end is for passenger cars and the upper end for big trucks. There are also credits for natural gas vehicle manufacturers and for installing natural gas fueling stations.
Why are billions of dollars of taxpayer-funded subsidies needed? According to T. Boone Pickens’s web site, it’s because natural gas vehicles are cheaper to operate than gasoline or diesel vehicles: “Even with higher initial costs (which will disappear as manufacturing ramps up) the life-cycle costs of NGVs [natural gas vehicles] are significantly lower. Fuel costs are at least 15 percent less using natural gas rather than gasoline or diesel.”
So people need to be paid in order to make them want to buy vehicles that will save them money. Yes, that makes sense: I always prefer the more expensive product unless there is a government rebate for the cheaper one. Call it the Boonedoggle bill.
As for getting us off foreign oil, this claim is trotted out to support every payoff to special interests in the energy sector. It’s a claim for which little evidence is ever produced. What will reduce our dependence on foreign oil is producing more of it in this country. What the bill will do is increase demand for natural gas, which will tend to increase prices for natural gas, which means a big payoff for T. Boone Pickens, who has invested heavily in–you’ll never guess–natural gas.
It’s sad to look at the list of conservatives who claim to be principled who have signed up to support the Boonedoggle. Here’s the complete list of Republican sponsors as of today. The chief sponsor is Rep. John Sullivan of Oklahoma. Most surprising and perhaps most disappointing is Rep. Ron Paul of Texas, who claims that he votes against everything that isn’t in the Constitution. I seemed to have missed the section of the Constitution that allows taking billions of dollars from taxpayers to give to fatcat billionaires and corporate welfare queens. Call it the Pickens-Your-Pocket bill.
This stampede by conservatives, including several freshmen who identify with the Tea Party, to support the T. Boone Pickens Earmark Bill makes a mockery of their claims to want to cut federal spending, eliminate subsidies to special interests, and get government out of people’s lives. We’re very close to returning to business as usual in Washington.
one of my co-workers has a hydrogen engine with his truck, he went from 12 MPG to 20 immediately, I am looking into making one myself!
The initial investment is under $250 and it runs on water!
So, I wonder how it will run on Hydrogen peroxide??
Ron Paul has lost his mind in his old age. He’s a follower and not a constitutional reform innovative leader anymore. He needs to be retired next election. I kind of had that feeling when he was running last election - that he was feeble and had been dominated by the libertarian anarachists.
He’s a Marxist socially and a economic chaos guy economically. About pork and Ron Paul before his mind failed him; he designed a strategy that if pork is happening, he will go for Texas to get their’s in committee but oppose it in the floor vote. That is okay with me. But now he is lost, lost, lost.
The T Boone Picken’s plan is a wonderful idea. I already see buses in my neighborhood that say run on natural gas.
If you could get all trucks and buses off oil and onto natural gas the demand for oil imports would go down by several million barrels@ day.
That would translate into to lower gas prices for everyone. So whatever government “investments” needed to make it happen would be well worth the taxpayers dime because it would result in lower fuel prices for everyone.
Oh and there’s also the balance of payments thing.That would be improved —which would help the US Dollar as well as give some ballast to debt obligations.
Is it OK to beat up somebody who is over 80?
Former “alarmist” scientist says Anthropogenic Global Warming (AGW) based in false science
Global Warming on Free Republic
I am, underlying your statement is an assumption that it's an uneconomic resource sans government subsidies, which is absurd.
My recollection is that Ron justifies subsidies and earmarks cause he’s just returning the taxpayers money to them. Not to the taxpayers who paid the tax, of course, government serves as an intermediary to determine who tax money should be returned to. Government needs to deregulate domestic energy production, from gas to oil drilling to shale to coal, get out of the way, and let private industry and the consumer find the most efficient source of fuel. And if people want windmill cars, that’s ok to, we don’t import the wind.
If it’s a tax CREDIT, it only means that it’s money fedgov doesn’t get its slimy hands on. I’m ok with that. It’s NOT money paid out of the treasury, it’s money someone’s made and GETS TO KEEP. I hope you see the difference.
Ron Paul can be bought all you Ron Paul bots.
Except it isn’t just a tax credit. Section 202 provides subsidies to auto manufacturers and it also provides a blank check for grants for R&D.
BUT, as I pointed out before, even these tax credits are nothing more than government redistribution for social engineering. It is taking taxes from one group and giving it to another based on if they take part in ‘government approved behavior’, in other words, letting big brother tell you what car to drive.
I guess, if you want a LNG car, Ron Paul is from the government and he is here to help.
Looks like Ron Paul is only asking that people be allowed to keep more of their OWN money. How is that a subsidy?
Makes perfect sense to me that we should use an abundant source of fuel here for our cars if we have it. Theoritically you could fill up in your home.
Repeated for the fifth time- Section 202 contains specific subsidies for auto manufacturers to produce LNG vehicles. It also provides a blank check for R&D to these companies.
BUT, regarding the tax credits- this is not ‘allowing people to keep their own money’, this is nothing more than government redistribution. It takes tax money from one group and gives it to another for the purpose of social engineering people’s driving habits.
This is not the government’s job. If it ‘made perfect sense’, T-Boone wouldn’t have his hand out begging for government money, money would be there to be made in the free market.
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