Free Republic

Despite Donald Trump’s attacks on Ben Carson regarding his surge in the polls in Iowa, the retired neurosurgeon says the comments are not "worth my time." Carson does not intend to attack the real-estate mogul. Well, at least not yet. “I don’t pay attention to that type of stuff, I really don’t. I really got beyond the mudslinging, the mud pit and fighting and calling each other names,” Carson said at a town hall at a fraternity house this morning in Iowa. "I got over that so long ago.” Saying he doesn’t take the attacks from Trump personally -- the...

Newly minted Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson told an Iowa audience on Tuesday that he would use the savings from ending oil industry subsidies to pay for new ethanol blending stations. Carson, in his first speech in the state as a candidate, was asked by a voter about the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), the federal mandate that fuel refiners blend a certain volume of ethanol and biodiesel into their gasoline and diesel supplies. "I don't particularly like the idea of government subsidies for anything because it interferes with the natural free market," Carson said, according to The Des Moines Register....

While a small group of corn farmers may benefit from the Renewable Fuel Standard, higher gas prices and less fuel-efficient gasoline hurt everyone. Ten years ago this month, President George W. Bush signed the Renewable Fuel Standard into law, implementing regulations that require companies to blend specific amounts of renewable fuels into gasoline. No state benefits more from the RFS than Iowa, and with the Iowa caucuses six months away, presidential candidates are already pandering, flip flopping, or avoiding the issue altogether as they attempt to woo voters. While Iowa farmers who grow corn specifically for biofuels have greatly benefited...

While the presidential horserace will consume much of the political media’s attention over the next year, muted Running Mate Match Game speculation is already underway. One figure that generates a disproportionate amount of discussion on this front is Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.). Despite a series of public demurrals, Rubio-for-VP buzz is unlikely to dissipate any time soon. In Rubio, Republicans have a gifted politician, a very effective communicator, and someone who has earned near-universal admiration among conservatives. He also hails from a critical swing state, and could almost single-handedly put a coveted and growing demographic into play, virtually overnight. Rubio...