Ted Cruz stands alone after the King Corn summit

[bigbadjohn45]

Ted Cruz stands alone after the King Corn summit


posted at 9:31 am on March 8, 2015 by Jazz Shaw







Yesterday we covered as the WSJ reported for us, the results were less than impressive in most cases.


Let's start with the bad news. First up… Rick Perry.

[T]he former governor of a petroleum-rich state [Governor Perry] suggested he didn't think it would be fair to end the RFS while oil companies continued to benefit from tax breaks. "I don't think you pull the RFS out and discriminate against the RFS and leave all these other subsidies," he said.

Jeb Bush acted like the RFS is a bad toy, but had no plans to put it back in the cupboard.

"The markets are ultimately going to have to decide this," said Mr. Bush, who declined to set a firm deadline for ending the fuel standard imposed a decade ago by his brother, former President George W. Bush. "Whether that's 2022 or sometime in the future I don't know," he said.

Chris Christie left no room for doubt.

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie was clearer about his position, saying he "absolutely" supported the fuel standard.

Mike Huckabee is at least consistent.

Mike Huckabee argued that support for ethanol is good national security policy, helping to reduce U.S. dependence on oil imports. He then quipped his support for the corn-based fuel wasn't about pandering to Iowans because of their important role in the presidential nominating process.

Rick Santorum also stuck to his unsatisfactory 2012 answer.

Former Senator Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania, who won the 2012 Iowa Republican caucuses, said ethanol "creates jobs in small-town and rural America, which is where people are hurting."

From the same Bloomberg article, Lindsey Graham just played to the crowd.

South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham expressed strong support for ethanol in his appearance. "Every gallon of ethanol you can produce here in Iowa is one less gallon to have to buy from people who hate your guts," he said.

Perhaps most disappointing, Scott Walker:

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker backed the RFS, saying that while he tends to oppose government intervention, a marketplace issue exists for ethanol. He said consumers do not have the same access to corn-based fuel as gasoline, and because of that there's a need for the standard.


"Right now we don't have a free and open marketplace, and so that's why I'm going to take that position," he said.

I've been building up some early hopes for you, Governor Walker, but I must say this was a big let down.


And then there was this guy…





When asked if he would support the Renewable Fuel Standard he just said no. And then he put out some hard truths which seemed to earn him the respect a difficult answer deserved.

"I recognize that this is a gathering of a lot of folks where the answer you'd like me to give is 'I'm for the RFS, darnit;' that'd be the easy thing to do," he said. "But I'll tell you, people are pretty fed up, I think, with politicians who run around and tell one group one thing, tell another group another thing, and then they go to Washington and they don't do anything that they said they would do. And I think that's a big part of the reason we have the problems we have in Washington, is there have been career politicians in both parties that aren't listening to the American people and aren't doing what they said they would do."


And the crowd applauded, giving Cruz the warmest welcome so far.

Hot air reached out to the Cruz campaign about how he managed such an answer.

"Ted Cruz is straightforward about what he believes, whether he is in Iowa, Texas, or Washington DC. We need more leaders who tell the truth about what they will do and the response to that kind of honesty is very positive."

I have to say, this was a potential game changer for me. I know that I probably put off some of you with my seemingly endless fascination with energy issues in general and ethanol subsidies in particular. It's a sort of wonky subject, but I feel it's an important one. And this forum in Iowa was, in my view, a test of character for the nascent candidates on a matter of vital interest.


I've expressed doubts in the past about the long term viability of Ted Cruz on the national stage, particularly given the horribly effective way the media has sold the "crazy wingnut" stories to the public. But this guy has demonstrated the kind of intestinal fortitude that is far too often lacking in GOP leaders, and he certainly showed those qualities once again in Iowa. Take this as a benchmark for the coming campaign. There weren't many clear standouts here, but the Best in Show was clearly a winner.
This post was edited on 3/9 10:03 AM by bigbadjohn45

 

[bigbadjohn45]

Iowa Ag Summit Applauds Ted Cruz Even When He Opposes Their Interests














by Joel Gehrke March 7, 2015 1:55 PM


Senator Ted Cruz (R., Texas) managed to turn a disagreement with a crowd of Iowa businesses and farmers into an applause line at the Iowa Agriculture Summit.


Cruz reiterated his opposition to the Renewable Fuels Standard, a popular policy in Iowa that presents a thorny problem for many Republicans who campaign against crony capitalism but want to win the GOP presidential nomination.


"I recognize that this is a gathering of a lot of folks where the answer you'd like me to give is 'I'm for the RFS, darnit;' that'd be the easy thing to do," he said. "But I'll tell you, people are pretty fed up, I think, with politicians who run around and tell one group one thing, tell another group another thing, and then they go to Washington and they don't do anything that they said they would do. And I think that's a big part of the reason we have the problems we have in Washington, is there have been career politicians in both parties that aren't listening to the American people and aren't doing what they said they would do."


And the crowd applauded, giving Cruz the warmest welcome so far in a day that has already featured Jeb Bush, Governor Chris Christie (R., N.J.) - who stated his support for the RFS - former Governor Mike Huckabee (R., Ark.), and former Governor Rick Perry (R., Texas).


They interrupted to clap at times throughout his discussion of immigration policy, as well. The audience welcomed Cruz's statement that "we've got to finally get serious about securing the border and stopping the problem of illegal immigration." That's the first aspect of a two-part immigration bill that he thinks would easily pass Congress.


"If we focused on the areas of bipartisan agreement, if we focused on securing the borders and improving legal immigration, we could craft legislation that would sail through Congress," Cruz said, before saying that Obama is holding up those issues for partisan reasons. The Texas freshman didn't say what policy he would support with respect to illegal immigrants already in the country, except to say that "amnesty is wrong" and emphasize that "there has been no one more vigorous in fighting President Obama's unconstitutional amnesty than I've been."


The show of support contrasted with the silence that met Jeb Bush's summary of his preferred immigration policy, even among a crowd of "business Republicans" who might be presumed to back Bush more readily than Tea Party conservatives. Bush, earlier in the day, gave a detailed summary of his immigration position. On the issues that they both addressed, Cruz and Bush seem to agree; but Bush took it one step further.


"Immigrants that are here need to have a path to legalized status," Bush told the staid crowd. "What we need to do is to make sure people pay fines, that they learn English, that they work, that they don't receive government assistance, that they earn legalized status over the long haul, that they come out from the shadows so that they can be productive with a provisional work permit. This is the only serious, thoughtful way, I think, to deal with this."


Cruz received another round of applause when he returned to the honesty theme. "When I tell you that I will fight with every breath in my body to stop the government regulation that is strangling farms and ranches; that is strangling small businesses; that is killing job growth; when I tell you I'll fight the EPA from expanding [the definition of] waters of the United States; when I tell you that I'll fight to stop Obamacare or executive amnesty, then you know you can count on that, that I'm going to do what I said I would do, and I'm going to tell you the truth."




This post was edited on 3/9 10:02 AM by bigbadjohn45

 

[bigbadjohn45]

Ted Cruz is the real deal. Maybe the only guy who would make unpopular decisions because they are the right way to repair our broken federal government. He is as honest as a politician will ever be, and if you ever heard his Dad speak you know he is held to the highest standard of integrity by those closest to him.

I'll say it again. Scott Walker is okay, but he is a media construct to keep voters away from the real conservative intellectual-- Ted Cruz. If they can't have Jeb, they need a guy they think they can manipulate and Walker has shown he will "evolve" on an issue for political expediency.


If we really want to turn the country around, and begin to fix the damage Obama has caused--I believe Ted Cruz is the only guy who will attempt bold change at the federal level.


I hope moments like this, when Cruz shows he is a cut above, starts to build him momentum. He would destroy Hillary given the chance, but the GOP Establishment will do everything in its power to stop him.

 

[MTLynn]

Apparently fox doesn't know that Ted Cruz and Rand Paul are 2016 contenders but Marco Rubio is?

Of course, in 2011 and 2012, fox routinely left out Ron Paul and Gary Johnson.

Fox News Poll

 

[nashvillegoldenflash]

BBJ, I like Sen. Ted Cruz just as much as you do but I'm not sure you are being fair to Gov. Scott Walker. Cruz is my first choice for the Republican presidential nomination but Walker is my second choice based mostly on his ability to fight the union in his home state of Wisconsin and sign a Right-to-Work bill into law. For what it's worth, I also like Dr. Ben Carson, but am not sure he will get enough support to sustain a presidential run for the nomination.

 

[nashvillegoldenflash]

BBJ, the reason that Sen. Cruz is my first choice for the Republican presidential nomination is because he is a warrior who shares my convictions (see link).

Ted Cruz Reading William Barret Travis' Letter

 

[bigbadjohn45]

Originally posted by nashvillegoldenflash:


BBJ, I like Sen. Ted Cruz just as much as you do but I'm not sure you are being fair to Gov. Scott Walker. Cruz is my first choice for the Republican presidential nomination but Walker is my second choice based mostly on his ability to fight the union in his home state of Wisconsin and sign a Right-to-Work bill into law. For what it's worth, I also like Dr. Ben Carson, but am not sure he will get enough support to sustain a presidential run for the nomination.

This would've been a good opportunity for Walker to stand up against the RFS, but he pandered to the crowd. Very disappointing. Meanwhile, Senator Cruz stood up for his convictions and received "the warmest welcome" according to the article. And yes, I'll still vote for Walker if he's the nominee, but he's still not my first choice.



Ethanol from corn is a huge energy loser-to produce 100 gallons of ethanol from corn, about 80 gallons of Diesel or gasoline need to be burned to plant and harvest the corn, while the food value of the corn is lost, and ethanol has only about half the fuel value of gasoline per gallon. Blending ethanol into gasoline does increase its octane number, and reduce emissions, but the optimum concentration is about 5%.



Back in the days when the United States imported most of its oil, it made sense to try to "grow fuel". But now that the US produces nearly enough oil to be self-sufficient (and could produce enough to export if drilling was allowed under government land), there is no need to throw taxpayer money at ethanol from corn, which would be far more useful to feed starving people in the Third World.



But since Republicans need the farm vote in Iowa, they keep on paying the corn growers, regardless of the fact that it makes no sense for the rest of the country.



Kudos to Cruz for telling the hard truth to the corn growers. He probably won't win the Iowa caucuses, but will this courageous common-sense position make him more popular elsewhere in the country? Iowa only has 6 Electoral Votes out of 538…