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That's Depressing

September 5, 2008, 1:17 pm

No, the news itself is good news, not bad:

This week, the Republican Party in its national platform called for an end to ethanol mandates in just the latest shot at a fuel alternative that, in some circles, has grown more target than treasure.

This was the part that was depressing:

High ranking politicians, including presidential candidate John McCain,
have publicly opposed ethanol subsidies before, but the platform
approved during the Republican convention in St. Paul, a corn-belt
capital, marks the first time a major U.S. party has taken an official stance against publicly funded ethanol incentives.

Talk about the emperor's new clothes.  If only we could get the first step on the campaign trail out of Iowa.

Tags: , ,
Category: Energy
  • http://tcktek.blogspot.com xpatUSA

    Wow. VeraSun's stock was well down on the year and now this!
    (No position in VSE but was thinking about it - they just opened another plant).

    T.C.

  • Bob Smith

    I am pleasantly surprised by this. On the other hand, is it real? Politicians often make promises about things they know sound good but they have no real intention of following through on. It is especially good when it's a politically contentious issue, which allows them to make a meager effort to follow through on the promise and then, having put on a good show, give up.

  • dsm

    As I recall, one of the reasons McCain lost Iowa was his opposition to farm subsidies. I don't know if he voice opposition to this particular one (or even if I'm mis-remembering his position).

  • Mike

    The Iowa Caucus is over, so it's not much of an issue there. I don't think I can ever remember politicians flocking to Iowa to woo voters after the caucus was over. However, other corn-producing states like MN, WI, IL and MO may be receiving some attention because of this. I don't think either party is ready to go so far as to alienate large, rural voting blocs in any of these states. In rural MN at least, ethanol is still seen as liquid gold.