SPENCER, Iowa — [crscore]Ted Cruz[/crscore] told reporters following him on his bus tour Wednesday that his position on ethanol mandates has been consistent, regardless of what his critics say.
“What I had said consistently is that we should phase out the [renewable fuel standard.] Indeed, I filed legislation in 2014 that is a five-year phase out of the RFS. That has been my position,” he said, noting he advocated for the RFS legislation he filed, which included opinion pieces and speeches in support of the legislation.
Cruz continued: “My view on energy is that we should pursue an energy policy that is all of the above — no mandates, no subsidies for anybody — and, indeed, the tax plan that I’m campaigning on eliminates energy subsidies and energy mandates for everybody across the board. There are no oil and gas subsidies. There’s no wind. There’s no solar. There’s no nothing. It levels the playing field.”
Asked about his comments linking the Clinton administration to North Korea’s nuclear test this week, the Texas Republican replied, “The North Korea deal was negotiated by the Clinton administration. Wendy Sherman led the negotiation.”
He explained: “It was the same foolhardy belief that you allow a rogue regime to receive billions of dollars that they will honor their commitments not to develop nuclear weapons and this naïve notion that they can just use peaceful nuclear technology for power generation.”
“Kim Jong-Il didn’t want nuclear power because he was looking for a cheaper electrical grid, he was looking to develop atomic bombs and ultimately hydrogen bombs,” Cruz said.
Finally, Cruz discussed the private property rights of Americans. He said that, as president, he would reform the Bureau of Land Management.
“There is no doubt that we have seen abuses from the BLM. We have cases in Texas and all across the country where people face a government that abuses power as an excuse to exercise arbitrary authority against the citizens. And I think we need to respect the property rights of American citizens,” he told The Daily Caller.
“We’ve seen the EPA going after landowners and fining them $75,000 a day under arbitrary proceedings just by using the power of government. And people are frustrated by a federal government that doesn’t protect our constitutional rights,” he said.
Polls show that Iowans prefer Cruz as their first choice for the Republican presidential nominee. The Hawkeye State will begin its caucuses in three weeks.
