Eric Branstad, the son of Iowa Republican Gov. Terry Branstad, gave presidential candidate Sen. Ted Cruz a back-handed compliment Monday night as the Texan was declared the GOP winner of the Iowa caucuses.
Branstad spoke about how corn ethanol affected how Iowans voted Monday.
“Even though Sen. Cruz’s position would be devastating to our economy and tens of thousands of Iowans’ livelihoods, even he, who has accepted more donations from oil than any other candidate and is personally invested in oil companies, claims that he’s pro-ethanol and wants to eliminate oil subsidies,” Branstad said as the head of the Iowa branch of America’s Renewable Future, an ethanol advocacy group.
“That’s a sure sign how important the [Renewable Fuel Standard] and ethanol are,” he added.
The statement came as Cruz was set to announce his victory in the Hawkeye State.
America’s Renewable Future said the vote in the caucuses showed Iowans “overwhelmingly vote for candidates who support the Renewable Fuel Standard,” an Environmental Protection Agency program that requires refiners to blend ethanol in gasoline.
“One hundred percent of Democrats and more than two-thirds of Republicans are caucusing for a pro-ethanol, pro-RFS candidate,” the group said.
Branstad said ethanol supporters “feel good about our results.”
“The vast majority of our candidates and the vast majority of caucus-goers realize the economic, national security and environmental benefits of the RFS,” he said.
