Phony scandals and the middle class

Fortunately, thanks to several speeches given by the President this week, we now know that Benghazi, the Department of Justice’s targeting of journalists, the IRS’s targeting of certain groups seeking tax exempt status, and NSA’s interception (and storage) of certain information about our daily communications, are all phony scandals.

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Yet another EPA smackdown

We did a post 18 months ago about the EPA’s requirement that refiners blend a specific amount of celluosic ethanol into gasoline.  If they didn’t blend the required amount, the refiners could obtain a “waiver” by paying the federal government $1.13 for every gallon of celluosic ethanol they didn’t consume.

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Obama’s Bain Capital

While the President was bashing Bain Capital earlier this year as an “evil rich” private equity venture capital firm that destroyed businesses causing people to lose their jobs, and perhaps their lives, the White House was in secret negotiations with Carlyle Group, an “evil rich” private equity venture capital firm.

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EPA sets 2012 cellulosic ethanol requirements

We have told you about cellulosic ethanol before.  Basically, it is any ethanol not made from corn, and, pursuant to a 2007 law, a certain amount of this stuff must be blended into our gasoline.  The problem is that no one knows how to make it in any commercially viable operation, even though the federal…

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How many Volts in a Tahoe?

It is now official. Per our friends at the EPA, by the 2025 model year, a car manufacturer’s fleet (i.e., cars and light trucks) must average 54.5 miles per gallon. This is known as the CAFE standard…Corporate Average Fuel Economy.  We’ll ignore for the moment that this standard is double our current standard, and focus…

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The car of the future

In late July, with much fanfare, the administration, through the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration announced new standards for motor vehicle “fuel efficiency”.  Currently, a manufacturer’s vehicle fleet must average 27.5 miles per gallon, and this has been the standard since 1990.  However, by 2025, the fleet average must be 54.5 miles per gallon.

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