Posted on 01/21/2016 2:17:48 AM PST by Cincinatus' Wife
One of the most destructive environmental subsidies in the United States has found an enthusiastic supporter in Donald Trump.
"The EPA should ensure that biofuel ... blend levels match the statutory level set by Congress," he said yesterday in Iowa, adding that he was "there with you 100 percent" on continuing federal support for ethanol. "You're going to get a really fair shake from me."
The ethanol lobby has rigorously courted Trump since April, arranging to speak at least weekly, including at least three in-person meetings, in addition to an ethanol-plant tour, the Wall Street Journal reports.
Trump's support for ethanol may win him votes in Iowa, but federal support for ethanol is a bum deal for Americans.
Under the 2007 Independence and Security Act, Congress mandated that the United States use 36 billion gallons of biofuels, including corn ethanol and cellulosic biofuel, by 2022.
And the federal government not only requires the use of ethanol; it also subsides it. Tax credits between 1978 and 2012 cost the Treasury as much as $40 billion. Moreover, numerous other federal programs, spanning multiple agencies, allot billions of dollars to ethanol in the form of grants, loan guarantees, tax credits, and other subsidies.
Taxpayers suffer in other ways, too. Vehicles can drive fewer miles per gallon using ethanol blends than they would with pure gasoline. So Americans end up spending an extra $10 billion per year for fuel, the Institute for Energy Research estimates.
Ethanol also guzzles 40 percent of the U.S. corn crop, and the resulting scarcity drives up the price of food. This year alone, the Congressional Budget Office estimated, American consumers will spend $3.5 billion more on groceries because of the ethanol mandate.
Rising prices of corn feed have even put some small feedlots and ranches out of business. And as grocery prices increase, so does federal spending on programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
In a further hallmark of terrible policy, it's probably not even possible for Americans to meet the ambitious ethanol goals Congress and the bureaucrats at the EPA have envisioned.
Ethanol-intensive fuel blends can wreak havoc on car, lawnmower, and boat engines. In fact, many vehicle manufacturers will no longer offer warranties when ethanol comprises 10 percent or more of fuel; engine erosion simply becomes too common.
So, we can't really increase the total amount of ethanol mixed into our gasoline much more, but - especially as vehicles become more fuel efficient - Americans aren't consuming enough gasoline to meet the Renewable Fuel Standards with a 10 percent ethanol blend. The EPA acknowledged this inconvenient mismatch last spring, setting three-year ethanol-use requirements at 3.75 billion gallons below the legal minimums.
Ethanol's green benefit is also far from certain, explaining why even many within the environmentalist Left question - or outright oppose - the federal government's support.
It takes about 29 percent more energy to refine a gallon of ethanol than gasoline, and that process is often fueled by dirty sources like coal. Factor in the emissions generated during this production process, and ethanol sometimes comes in less green than old-fashioned gasoline. On top of that, burning ethanol also emits higher quantities of the chemical compounds that produce smog.
Then again, perhaps it's not surprising that Trump likes federal support of ethanol. After all, the real-estate mogul's business model has historically hinged on using tax abatements and other subsidies to make his building projects profitable.
(An example: As we reported in August, Trump Tower - which features a Gucci store Trump claimed was "worth more money than Romney" - has received a $163.775 million tax break from the city of New York.)
Many of Trump's constituents have rejected the so-called Republican establishment because of its corrupt preferential treatment for Wall Street and Big Business. But Trump's support for ethanol belies his populist Main Street rhetoric. In reality, he's just another rich, East Coast politician who would prop up special interests at the expense of the taxpayer.
-Jillian Kay Melchior writes for National Review as a Thomas L. Rhodes Fellow for the Franklin Center. She is also a senior fellow at the Independent Women's Forum and the Tony Blankley Fellow at the Steamboat Institute.
Alinsky rule # 13:
“Pick the target, freeze it, personalize it, and polarize it.” Cut off the support network and isolate the target from sympathy. Go after people and not institutions; people hurt faster than institutions.
Is there another country where food is cheaper. Please cite your source.
People defending Ethanol Subsidies on FR brought to you by the ultra conservative Trump.
You like to post quotes that someone attributed to Trump.
Here is a Cruz quote:
7. “But a Camel’s hair brush is made of squirrel fur, and it makes you wonder the squirrels apparently have a very bad marketing department.â€
“And you want this man near the Nuke Codes.”
I do believe you two were agreeing with each other. And the “markes” was clearly a typo - something I do all too often in spite of my best efforts...
just bought a gallon of milk for $2.oo and a pound of deli muenster cheese for $3.99. I bought 5 lbs of smoked ham for $20. I eat more meat than a puma. 2 loaves of quality multi grain bread for $4 and a six pack of 120 oz diet mountain dews for $2.00. Don’t tell me food is inflationary in America. We are the best fed country in the world.””
The left’s attack on just another business never ends. Ask them to find another country where food is cheaper?
I live in Toledo, Ohio. The cost of food is not a big issue around here. Gas is around $1.40 a gallon too and I’m driving around in a brand new Chevy Silverado 4x4 for less than $300/month. I am always on the look out for inflation. it just isn’t there. There’s deflation and as much as I like the prices, I know that’s dangerous. The current stock market fluctuations are evidence of the kind of things that result from deflation. If it is allowed to get out of control in the US Ag industry, we will all be in for trouble.
Stop selling Ag products for about 30 days and see what happens. Look what happened in the USSR when the landowners were purged and Ag was deemed the enemy there.
The military, border control, judicial, etc. Those things enumerated in the constitution (I’m talking about the federal level only).
We already have rampant deflation in the oil industry and look what’s happening with the stock market. It can’t be allowed to run rampant in the agricultural industry. prices need to be supported.
On this issue he is completely wrong. We do not need ethanol and needs to be fazed out.
Pray America wakes
It should be clear to any reasonable person that these people attacking US AG are radical nut jobs who should not be allowed to gain any kind of power in government. Our economy is not strong and would not survive their reckless abandon.
You on drugs? Drinking?
I didn’t say anything about food being cheaper in other countries. Nothing.
I did say food prices have gone up a lot in the last five years unlike what was claimed.
No one is forcing you. There is gasoline without ETOH available. If I am wrong, please tell how you are forced to buy ETOH. Do you approve of drinking it?
“That’s rich... It is all about politics and forcing people to buy things without a choice by force of government.”
Now that I think about it, Africa is the poster-child for agricultural price supports. Why should anyone want to move to Africa, when you want to bring Africa here?
You left off the first part:
“You might think a camel’s hair brush must be made of camels.”
And?
Hey, this is still a free country. No one is forcing you to buy anything, just forcing you to pay for it. /s
Please tell us of an industry that doesn’t receive a tax break. Cite your source. When was the last time you farmed? Why is allowing a farmer to keep more of the money he earned bad business? Why are ideas and attacks against private enterprise becoming more prevalent on free republic? This is not a left wing forum.
Other Ag supports.
USDA and food programs.
Oil depletion.
HHS.
Railroads.
Aviation supports.
Things that are not Constitutionally mandated, but mandated by federal law, things that the states should provide as needed by their residents.
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