Posted on 12/01/2015 4:44:21 PM PST by Isara
Ad Makes Bogus Claim About Cruz Support for Oil Subsidies
HOUSTON, Texas - The Cruz for President Campaign today sent a letter to Iowa radio stations requesting they stop running a false ad placed by America's Renewable Future, a lobbyist group that wants to keep taxpayer subsidies going to the ethanol industry.
The ad falsely claims, "Politicians like Ted Cruz support subsidies for Big Oil, but want to end support for ethanol."
"It is blatantly false to suggest that Sen. Cruz wants to end the Renewable Fuel Standard while maintaining subsidies for oil," Cruz spokesman Rick Tyler said. "Cruz has repeatedly stated that he would end all energy specific subsidies, both ethanol and oil among others."
Earlier this year in a speech delivered at Heritage Action in Washington, D.C., Cruz said, "Big government energy mandates don’t stop with ethanol. There are tax credits for almost every form of energy. Each designed to give one industry a leg up over the other."
He went on to say that we should level the playing field, end the special interest handouts, and stop the energy cronyism. He supported the Energy Freedom and Economic Prosperity Act, sponsored by Utah Sen. Mike Lee and Kansas Rep. Mike Pompeo, which would eliminate all technology-specific energy tax credits.
Tyler continued, "While Cruz stands consistently in support of the free market, Sen. Rubio champions corporate giveaways like the RFS and sugar subsidies that pick winners and losers in order to enrich lobbyists at the expense of the American taxpayers."
The text of the letter to the radio stations is below and may be viewed here:
December 1, 2015
Dear Station Manager:
On behalf of Cruz for President, I write this letter to inform you that, based upon available information, America's Renewable Future, Inc. has purchased media time to publicly disseminate a false and misleading advertisement regarding Senator Ted Cruz.
The ad falsely claims, "Politicians like Ted Cruz support subsidies for Big Oil, but want to end support for ethanol."
To the contrary, Ted Cruz has repeatedly stated that he would end energy subsidies for both ethanol and oil among other energy subsidies.
He specifically supports the Energy Freedom and Economic Prosperity Act, sponsored by Utah Sen. Mike Lee and Kansas Rep. Mike Pompeo, which would do just that.
Because this advertisement makes a flatly false factual claim for which your station is ultimately responsible, we urge you to exercise your discretion as a licensee to refuse to continue to broadcast this advertisement, and, because it is already airing, immediately pull the advertisement from your rotation.
As an FCC licensee you have the legal responsibility to exercise independent editorial judgment and discretion to oversee and protect the marketplace of ideas, but also to avoid deliberate misrepresentations and intentional libel. Political Programming Policies, 7 FCC Rcd 678, 685 n.54 (1991)("licensees are not required to accept any political material that is not authorized by candidates"). Such obligations must be taken seriously because courts command broadcasters to "protect the public from false, misleading or deceptive advertising." Licensee Responsibility with Respect to the Broadcast of False, Misleading or Deceptive Advertising, 74 FCC 2d 623 (1961). Your failure, as an FCC licensee, to fulfill this obligation, may be deemed an "underlying abdication" of your duties as such a licensee and result in the loss of your station's license. Cosmopolitan Broadcasting Corp. v. FCC, 581 F.2d 917, 927 (D.C. Cir. 1978). With this letter, Cruz for President reserves all rights, remedies and recourse to which we are entitled in connection with the potential or actual broadcast of the advertisement referenced herein, and that no action or inaction by Cruz for President shall be deemed to constitute a waiver, relinquishment or other impairment of such rights, remedies or recourse.
Thank you for your consideration and please do not hesitate to contact me if you have questions.
Sincerely,
Eric S. Brown
General Counsel
###
Attack ads against Ted Cruz only makes his supporters more feisty.
Uhhhhhhh, personally, I'd rather Cruz did call for ending subsidies for Big Corn.
A lesson Douchebag Dewhurst learned all too well.
Did you read the article?
I think I finally figured out why all of the economies around the globe are in BIG trouble and on the verge of collapse. BIG business went over to the commie ‘RATS’ side when they learned these new age communists like Obama are a hell of a lot greedier and bigger thieves than the Republicans were.
He did. That's why they are attacking him.
I applaud Ted’s Ethanol stance but it will probably cost him any chance in Iowa. Sorry, but that’s the way the corn grows.
The lies are gonna fly this election season, the establishment is in a panic.
He has.....It’s in the article..
He wants to end all of them.
No. I gather from the headline that Cruz supports throwing money down a big corn hole. Does the article say something different?
Fair enough...
Any society that burns corn, is in for a painful end.
And that’s exactly what should happen.
Good for him. It’s about time.
Cruz wants to end all ethanol subsidies. I believe he is against farm subsidies in general
The "No More Subsidies Act."
Once the No More Subsidies Act is signed into law there will be no more Subsidies ever and no more money to foreign nations unless we are purchasing actual needed stuff like Oil for the petroleum reserves etc.
Good for him.
Thanks for sparing me a lot of boring reading.
Is this lie approved by Rubio?
So would he end subsidies to SUGAR, to TOBACCO, to WHEAT, to MILK. That would be a good idea.
The Corn Hustlers like Rubio a bit more:
I don’t think that Washington should be picking winners and losers. When it comes to biofuel, when it comes to ethanol, ethanol is competitive in the marketplace and will remain competitive in the marketplace without a federal mandate from Washington.
Des Moines Register: Cruz won’t bend on RFS opposition (March 6, 2015)
http://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/elections/presidential/caucus/2015/02/28/ted-cruz-ethanol-mandate-opposition/24187857/
“I think anytime government tries to pick winners and losers, it’s a mistake.â€
Wall Street Journal: At Iowa Ag Summit, GOP Split on Renewable Fuel Rule (March 7, 2015)
http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2015/03/07/at-iowa-ag-summit-gop-hopefuls-split-on-renewable-fuel-rule/
“The answer you’d like me to give is, ‘I’m for the RFS.’ Darn it, that would be the easy thing to do,†Mr. Cruz said. “But I tell you, people are pretty fed up, I think, with politicians that run around and tell one group one thing and tell another group another thing.â€

Senator Marco Rubio
NEEDS WORK…
Tweet The Candidate
Senator Rubio replied to a question about the Renewable Fuel Standard in the Iowa Farm Bureau’s candidate questionnaire: https://www.iowafarmbureau.com/News/2016-Farmers-Caucus/Read-the-Candidates-Positions
Question: “Do you support the Renewable Fuels Standard as passed by Congress, and oppose the EPA’s proposed reduction of renewable fuel usage required in the liquid fuel supply?â€
Sen. Rubio: “We must move towards market-based energy policies where all sources are self-sustainable without government mandates. However, many have made investments based on the RFS law, and I do not support pulling the rug out from underneath them.â€
Des Moines Register: Marco Rubio will not attend Iowa Ag Summit (March 4, 2015)
In the Senate, Rubio has voted against ethanol subsidies. He said Wednesday that he supports a mandate for renewable fuels like the federal Renewable Fuel Standard, although he believes it must be phased out over time.
He said his positions are rooted in the experience of farmers in Florida, who he said have been harmed by unfair international trade.
“If there’s ever an area where I’ve been willing to use government to assist an industry, it’s been agriculture because it’s an industry that faces unfair global competition and if we lose the industry you can’t get it back,†he said.
http://americasrenewablefuture.com/rfs2016/#
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