Radio ads hit Iowa: 'Politicians like Ted Cruz are the worst kind'

Washington Examiner ^

[springwater13]

Ted Cruz is under attack. The Texas senator's rise in Iowa presidential surveys has attracted criticism from all sides.

America's Renewable Future, a bipartisan political group with the support of ethanol and agricultural industry workers, unleashed new digital and radio ads attacking Cruz in Iowa. The senator's opposition to ethanol mandates has drawn the ire of ARF, whose ads claim that Cruz's policy proposals "threaten rural Iowa and thousands of jobs."

"Politicians like Ted Cruz are the worst kind: Hypocrites," the ad says. "There are millions of reasons Ted Cruz supports Big Oil instead of Iowa farmers. Call politician Ted Cruz. Tell him to stop being a hypocrite and support Iowa jobs."

Cruz opposes the Renewable Fuel Standard, which determines the amount of ethanol and other renewable fuels that must be blended into gasoline. Annette Sweeney, a former Republican state representative and ARF co-chair, said Cruz has not been honest about his opposition to the Renewable Fuel Standard.

[Uncle Miltie]

Who is “Iowa Renewable Fuels Association” you may ask? Spot the corporate teat suckers below:

IRFA Staff and Board Members

The Iowa Renewable Fuels Association was formed in 2002 to represent the state’s biodiesel and ethanol producers. The trade group fosters the development and growth of the renewable fuels industry in Iowa through legislative and regulatory efforts, education and promotion, and infrastructure development.

Board of Directors

Officers

President

Brian Cahill, Southwest Iowa Renewable Energy

Vice President

Tom Brooks, Western Dubuque Biodiesel, LLC

Treasurer

Eamonn Byrne, Plymouth Energy, LLC

Secretary

Rick Schwarck, Absolute Energy, LLC

Past President

Steve Bleyl, Green Plains, Inc.

At-Large

Craig Willis, Archer Daniels Midland
Brad Albin, Renewable Energy Group

Board Members

Steve Nogel, Ag Processing, Inc.
Pat Edmonds, Big River Resources
Brad Davis, Corn, LP
Danny Viall, Fiberight
Jerry Calease, Golden Grain Energy
Mathew Driscoll, Homeland Energy Solutions
Bill Couser, Lincolnway Energy
Daryl Haack, Little Sioux Corn Processors
James Broghammer, Pine Lake Corn Processors
Bill Howell, POET Biorefining Coon Rapids
Delayne Johnson, Quad County Corn Processors
Bob Van Gelder, Siouxland Energy Cooperative
Denny Mauser, Western Iowa Energy

[FourPeas]

Looks like an article I’d read, but the Washington Examiner site is so annoying with the way it takes up more than half the screen with a persistent banner and ad. Since I block JavaScript, it leaves only 3-5 lines of text available to read on each screen. It’s amazing just how stupid so many webpage developers are.

[Dr. Sivana]

the ad says. "There are millions of reasons Ted Cruz supports Big Oil instead of Iowa farmers"

MILLIONS ?

Name 2, and I'm for Trump.

1. He's a senator from Texas, he might want to put teir interests first.

2. mmmmm . . . ya got me!

It is amusing that in their view being against a MANDATE to sell ethanol makes one against farmers.

[marron]

It takes political courage to campaign in Iowa and openly oppose ethanol.

[VanDeKoik]

Outside of draining money from candidates’ pockets!

[DaveyB]

Squealing little piglets!

Free enterprise under attack by some piggies attached to the teat of government subsidies. Squeal little piggies squeal, it is easier than competing where the market not the government determines the winners.

[rollo tomasi]

What is the difference between “Big Oil” and “Big Corn”?

[Eric in the Ozarks]

My car and pickup are designed to handle ethanol gasoline. My small equipment are not. I have to pay a $.50 premium for straight premium because the only regular gas is blended. I should have a choice.

[Texan5]

The position Cruz has taken makes perfect sense to me-why should we pay subsidies to farmers for producing a food crop not to be used as food for both animals and humans, but to be burned to produce a costly and inefficient vehicle fuel?

[stephenjohnbanker]

Yep. Pure nonsense.

[SamAdams76]

I've said it several times here over the years and it bears repeating.

Here's how we should select our nominees:

Have three national (50 individual contests) primaries during each presidential cycle.

The first set of primaries should be held last week of January and is meant to weed out the pretenders. Anybody receiving 10% or more of the vote in a given state will move on to that state's second primary.

Around end of March, we will have our second set of (50) primaries. This time, only those with 20% or more of the vote will move on. In most cases, this will be only 2-3 candidates for each state.

Then in early June, have the third set of primaries and apportion delegates accordingly (not winner take all). The candidates will take those delegates to the convention and a nominee will be chosen.

[FourPeas]

Just read-up on Annette Sweeney. She’s a real piece of work. And, not in a good way.

[FourPeas]

[thackney]

If this crap really worked, it would grow sorghum which makes ethanol more cheaply and efficiently than corn.

The ethanol mandate is not tied to corn. If sorghum was really cheaper to produce ethanol, there is not a reason to use corn instead.

[BigEdLB]

ARF Super PAC

[Red Steel]

No corn lobby.

[jjotto]

Sorghum (aka milo) is indeed used to produce fuel ethanol in places that are drier (Kansas, California) than most of the Corn Belt. It does not have a price advantage over corn, except in local areas.

There is no mandate to use corn to make fuel ethanol.

[Vigilanteman]

I'm not sure when or if that changed, but there was a lot of talk about changing it back during the dry years of 2007-8 which went nowhere. In general, sorghum grows well in the same cropland which grows corn, but has lower water requirements and is more heat tolerant.

Thus, you will see a lot of sorghum grown in places like Texas and Oklahoma and much less corn. Corn grown ethanol does, I believe, produce a mash byproduct efficient for feeding livestock more so than sorghum and this may be the difference.

Anyway, remove the subsidy from ethanol and see what happens.

[wastedyears]

That means more food to actually be consumed, instead of being used as a fuel additive.

[Red Steel]

That means more food to actually be consumed, instead of being used as a fuel additive.

I brought up ethanol used as a gas fuel additive to an Iowa farmer a few years ago, and he told me that corn yield per acre is much higher than it was in the not so distant past. I believe he said about 3 times more.