|| By FITSNEWS || Former New York governor George Pataki – a left-leaning “Republican” who flirted with a presidential campaign in 2008 and 2012 – deserves a bit of praise this week.
According to The Des Moines Register, Pataki joined U.S. Senator Ted Cruz in opposing the ongoing subsidization of ethanol fuel during a candidate forum in Iowa (home of the rabidly pro-ethanol “King Corn” lobby).
“I honestly don’t think that the federal government should require anybody in America to buy anything, whether it is ethanol or Obamacare,” Pataki said.
Nice …
Pataki and Cruz got it right … unfortunately GOP presidential candidates Jeb Bush, Chris Christie, Lindsey Graham, Mike Huckabee, Rick Perry, Rick Santorum and Scott Walker all got it wrong.
Especially Walker, who cluelessly said ethanol subsidies should continue because “right now we don’t have a free and open marketplace.”
Ummm, duh … government is propping up a manipulated marketplace, and Cruz and Pataki are calling for that manipulation to stop. Last time we checked, that was the pro-free market view.
Pataki – who was the Empire State’s governor from 1995 to 2006 – also called for fundamental reform of the American tax code, arguing that the vast majority of existing deductions (excluding the mortgage deduction) should be eliminated in favor of lower across-the-board rates.
“It would put the lobbyists out of business,” he said.
Pataki isn’t considered a viable presidential contender, but credit where credit is due … he was one of only two candidates to get the ethanol question right.
8 comments
The Pataki-man don’t like ethanol from corn sub-sodi – ’cause it makin’ feed cost mo for upstate dairy farmers – who I might mention – employ lot’s of dem illegal his-spanicos.
OK … your point is what? There ain’t dairies in every state?
That’s an “udderly” ridiculous accusation.
???? …
care and feeding of beltway bandits leaves too little filtering back to the states through the kidneys of a process of earmarks and militarized agencies that have no constitutional mandate or real need to have their own regional swat teams, but I digress.
Glad you noticed it too. FEMA spent more on bullets after “super storm” Sandy than they did on drinking water for the victums. The BLM used armed swat teams to seize that Nevada cow puncher’s herd.
Yes, the current administration is building armies of Brown Shirts … Oh Bummer. ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sturmabteilung )
You have to like politicians that don’t bend over for the corn lobby. The corn ethanol program is like a tax on the consumer. Time to put an end to this “boondoggle”.
“right now we don’t have a free and open marketplace” said Scott Walker. So Scott said we need to continue the ethanol mandate and not let the consumer have the freedom to choose a product that wont harm their chain saw, lawnmower, Jay Leno’s antique car or whatever. That is what this mandate has essentially done, it prevents access to non ethanol laced fuel.