"What Trump, Sarah Palin and the Governor of Iowa are saying is 'Don't vote for Cruz! We want to put a tariff on the people!'" ~ Mark LevinFolks, are we interested at all in actually saving the republic as a whole? Or is it just each state for itself? Just with these ethanol subsidies, we are witnessing how the Establishment congeals from both ends to subsidize for votes like your average Democrat, while only one candidate chooses the conservative path towards ending such governmental dependence and is demonized for taking the principled approach.
Levin points out that it'll be interesting to see how Iowan voters react to this establishment broadside...
Iowa Governor Terry Branstad urged Republicans not to vote for Cruz because of the latter's opposition to ethanol tax subsidies; most reports have ignored that his son, Eric, is a propagandist for the ethanol industry. The crony capitalists have enormous power, including in the governor's mansion. It'll be interesting to see how Republicans in Iowa react to this.And it tears your car's engine to crap faster too. But, shhh...keep shucking!
NYTimes: Candidates, welcome to Iowa. Now meet the governor’s son, who is tracking you.
Eric Branstad, a Republican like his father, Gov. Terry E. Branstad, has lurked at candidates’ events across the state, sometimes with colleagues recording video. But rather than collecting opposition research, the younger Mr. Branstad is representing Iowa’s prized ethanol industry, which faces increasing pressure to wean itself of government support.
The mandate requires that corn-based ethanol and other biofuels be blended with gasoline. Supporters say it keeps corn and soybean prices high and gas prices low. But the Environmental Protection Agency is considering reducing the volume of biofuels required in the mix. At the same time, some conservatives oppose the regulation as a federal subsidy.
"It's getting confusing out there. There was a time when my friend Sarah agreed with Cruz & opposed ethanol subsidies." ~ Mark LevinOops...here's Palin's past stance, so what changed?
Well, that was then. Now the Palins have attacked Cruz over minutiae, while jumping aboard the Chump train, supporting the top dog who's pushing more subsidies for votes, and boastfully PROUD that his 'serious' establishment ties are growing!TheWeek: Sarah Palin may or may not be running for president, but she has already weighed in on a key issue for Iowa's first-in-the-nation caucus-goers: Ethanol subsidies. She's against them. "I think that all of our energy subsidies need to be relooked at today and eliminated," Palin told RealClearPolitics. "We've got to allow the free market to dictate what's most efficient and economical for our nation's economy." Palin's call to end the subsidies, popular in Iowa because they boost the price of corn, echoes 2012 GOP candidate Tim Pawlenty's stance.
Has Trump forgotten how angry people are with the GOP establishment? Not only is he using establishment arguments to attack Ted Cruz, he’s now boasting that the establishment sees him as a candidate they can get behind and that they are contacting him left and right. This is an ad in the making for Ted Cruz.
Related link: It Would Be Just Like the GOP Establishment To Back Trump
It's beyond hypocritical, like a reality show in the making, that Trump NOW BASHES Cruz for what Sarah Palin wanted in 2011 – to END ethanol subsidies!!
Trump again hits Cruz on ethanol, then says that he, like other pols, are controlled by special interests and donors.
— Ali Vitali (@alivitali) January 13, 2016
Trump is basically saying here that he’ll do whatever it takes to get votes, even it means supporting enormous government subsidies to buy them – not a terribly conservative value.Hardly. Trump is encouraging federal regulators to INCREASE the amount of ethanol blended into the nation’s gasoline supply to pander to Iowans in the name of energy independence...
He also criticized Cruz today for calling McConnell a liar in the Senate. So he’s against calling out lies from politicians. Another conservative value?
On Tuesday’s Mark Levin Show, Donald Trump sounds like he is buying political votes by supporting ethanol. The ethanol issue is a perfect example of crony capitalism, pandering, and the environmental movement at their worst. Now, Trump wants to drive up subsidies for ethanol even higher and wants the EPA to carry out the mandates. Why would he empower the EPA to go even further than President Obama has on ethanol?Related link: Donald Trump calls for higher ethanol mandate at Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit
He wants to drive up ethanol subsidies HIGHER and wants the EPA to mandate it, again, something his latest endorser vehemently opposed just a few short years ago. But while in Iowa, whatever it takes for the votes, which is why Levin questions Trump:
That it is, but this is the blind will, or desperation one, of the 'new' establishment to join the old for election first and foremost in the pursuit of power. Just remember, one stands alone in opposition to this lobby..."If somebody’s going to go into Iowa in a tough race and sellout on the ethanol issue…there’s something totally wrong with that.
That’s not conservative.
That’s not capitalism.
That’s not anti-establishment.
That’s a disgrace."
Related links: Tuesday campaign recap: Count on CruzIBD: Ethanol has long been the dead man's pass of presidential politics: No one makes it through Iowa without paying homage to the corn-based fuel now a $5 billion state industry. But this year may be different.
Ted Cruz is leading the Republican polls in the Hawkeye State despite his opposition to the federal mandate requiring gasoline to be blended with 10% ethanol. He considers the mandate to be a form of corporate welfare — which it is.
If Cruz becomes the first Republican in more than a quarter-century to win the Iowa caucuses without supporting ethanol, it'll be a win for telling voters the truth. And it's about time.
Horowitz: Ethanol is the Anchor Baby of our Economic System
