Trump should stay true to ethanol promises

By Jerry Calease, Waverly, Letter to the Editor

Iowa’s senators deserve praise for working to ensure that the promises made by President-elect Donald Trump are kept when it comes to ethanol and the Renewable Fuel Standard.

President Elect Donald Trump speaking at the 2016 Renewable Fuels Summit

President Elect Donald Trump speaking at the 2016 Renewable Fuels Summit

Just days after Trump named Scott Pruitt of Oklahoma to lead the Environmental Protection Agency, Sen. Chuck Grassley said he would “press” Pruitt about ethanol policy priorities and Sen. Joni Ernst said that she will be “going through a rigorous line of questioning” on the RFS during Pruitt’s confirmation hearing in the Senate’s Environment and Public Works Committee.

That’s the kind of leadership we have come to expect and appreciate from Iowa’s senators. Trump campaigned in strong support of ethanol and that’s, in part, why he won most of the votes in rural America. However, Grassley and Ernst are smart to “trust but verify” Pruitt’s views about ethanol and the future of the RFS. Pruitt will need to recognize the importance the renewable fuels economy has on our nation and rural America.

To read the rest of the article on the Des Moines Register website, click here.