Earth Equity News

McCain Wavers in His Opposition to Ethanol Subsidies. By Larry Rohter, NYTimes, October 26, 2008. "John McCain lost the Iowa Republican caucuses in part because he has always opposed government subsidies for growing corn ethanol, a position not popular in a state synonymous with corn. But at a rally here Sunday afternoon, Mr. McCain seemed to suggest that government has a role in promoting corn ethanol. 'We'll invest in all energy alternatives: nuclear, wind, tide, solar, ethanol, biofuels,' he said at a rally at the University of Northern Iowa. 'We'll encourage the manufacture of hydro and flex fuel and electric automobiles. And on the subject of ethanol, my friends, I will open every market in the world to the best products in the world, and that's the American agriculture farm'... Until now, Mr. McCain has talked of subsidies for corn ethanol with the same disdain he reserves for earmarks and pork-barrel spending. That has put him at odds with his Democratic rival, Senator Barack Obama, who as a senator from Illinois, another corn-producing state, has always been a strong booster of corn ethanol, and also has some prominent corn ethanol advocates as close advisers. Accompanying Mr. McCain on the stage at the rally Sunday afternoon was his colleague Senator Charles Grassley of Iowa, who is perhaps the foremost supporter of corn ethanol in the Senate. In an interview with the Financial Times published last week, Mr. Grassley criticized Mr. McCain's energy plan, saying it unfairly discriminated against ethanol." [Editor's Note: Until now Sen. McCain's opposition to ethanol subsidies has been his one environmental/climate stance that we have preferred over Sen. Obama's.]