Posted on 11/13/2015 1:00:19 PM PST by cripplecreek
DES MOINES | Voters who wish to pick a presidential candidate and at the same time support a federal renewable fuel program that benefits Iowa corn growers have at least nine options, according to an advocacy group’s new report.
America’s Renewable Future, an Iowa advocacy group that promotes the federal rule that mandates a certain amount of corn-based ethanol be placed in the nation’s fuel supply, on Tuesday issued a midterm report card on the 2016 presidential candidates.
Nine candidates — six Republicans and all three Democrats — earned the report’s top grade for their expressed support for the federal Renewable Fuel Standard.
The candidates who received the report’s “good†rating were Republicans Donald Trump, Mike Huckabee, Rick Santorum, Chris Christie, Lindsey Graham and George Pataki and Democrats Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders and Martin O’Malley.
“These candidates demonstrated strong and consistent support for the RFS,†said Eric Branstad, state director for America’s Renewable Future.
The group also will publish a final report card in January, shortly before Iowa’s first-in-the-nation caucuses.
Branstad said until then the group will focus in particular on the candidates it graded as “needs work.†Those four candidates — Republicans Marco Rubio, Jeb Bush, Carly Fiorina and John Kasich — have been inconsistent or unclear on the Renewable Fuel Standard, according to the report.
The report classified four GOP candidates as “bad†on the RFS: Ted Cruz, Ben Carson, Rand Paul and Bobby Jindal.
Cruz, a senator from Texas, has introduced legislation to repeal the standard.
Iowa’s renewable fuels industry supports more than 46,700 jobs, generates $4.9 billion of the state’s GDP and $2.5 billion in income for Iowa households, according to the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association.
The standard is popular in Iowa, the nation’s largest corn producer.
Make that America’s Renewable Future
Burning food is a sin.
“Cruz, a senator from Texas, has introduced legislation to repeal the standard.”
I watched a video where he was with a small group of Iowans and was asked about it. He said something like “Well, I’m from Texas - we have lots of crops and corn too. If Ethanol is another thing our farmers can produce - great! But, I think our government is already too big, and too involved in what we can and can not do. And I know this won’t make be popular around here - but Ethanol is another place that the government doesn’t need to be meddling in.”
Cruz got great applause.
Too bad they can’t vote Republican. However, the DNC will register them to vote if you choose.
Way to go, gentleman. Damn the ethanol cabal.
I think most Iowans may hate the arrogance of the farmers and businesses that have gooten very wealthy on their backs and the backs of other taxpayers.
This is one more reason to vote for Cruz. If he states his opposition to ethanol mandates while in the state of Iowa, I have every reason to believe him when he says that all price supports and the mandates that go with them should be eliminated.
“Cruz, a senator from Texas, has introduced legislation to repeal the standard.”
Good for him. Ethanol is a scam. Does more harm than good. Talk about pork in politics.
I’m all for repealing anything that rewards farmers anywhere for wasting a food crop by selling it to be burned as fuel-all that has done is raise the price of corn, and the price of the meat from animals that are fed corn as part of their diet-and it has not lowered the price of fuel, either-it is a loser all around...
And lots of other crops are being replaced by ethanol corn - so the price of wheat, beans, soy, etc. have also increased.
Even the Sierra Club now calls for a ban on the ethanol support and requirements. It uses up so much water both in the growing and the processing. In California (rapidly growing in ethanol production) it takes 2138 liters of water for 1 liter of ethanol.
Ethanol is very hard on small engines. Really, using food as fuel when we have such a abundance of oil is just plain flat out stupid.
This is an area where I favor Cruz over Trump.
http://www.energytribune.com/2739/more-ethanol-equals-more-co2-emissions#sthash.ZwWQKClk.dpbs
An automotive engineer describes how using ethanol INCREASES the amount of CO2 burned by your car.
Ethanol reduces CO2 by about 3.5%. BUT - most cars get reduced gas mileage, on the order of 4% to 7% - so if you have to burn 7% more fuel and only reduce CO2 by 3.5%/gallon - you are putting out MORE CO2.
This whole global warming crap isn’t about the environment. It is partly about making money and scamming the system. It is primarily a form of wealth redistribution from the developed, western countries to the Third World.
Just FYI, the Eric Branstad of the ARF is son of the governor. Eric was a ‘troubled teen’.
Fuel ethanol has never been much of an issue in the Iowa caucuses, contrary to popular belief.
Make that the worlds renewable dark ages.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.