Stupid though it was, it was a corn-growing State coup. It drove up the profit margin on farmer's corn harvests.
Several problems:
a) corn is a staple of impoverished persons, particularly Mexican peasants, tortillas etc.
b) It drives up U.S. food prices to add an additional consumer to such commodity.
Corn as food had its own market driven price.
Corn as basis for gasolhol also has a market driven price.
Corn as both food staple AND fuel ingredient drives up the market driven price for both markets, making both fuel and food more expensive.
That's frick in stupid, EVEN if it benefits Iowa corn farmers.
Cellulosic ethanol is fine.
But where 100% and 90% gasoline 10% alcohol are available in the same market, it's the 100% gasoline that gets the lion's share of the market.
Engine manufacturers, particularly small engine manufacturers for carbureted engines, lawn mowers, weed-eaters, chainsaws, motorcycles, etc. warn in their owner's manuals about the harm gasohol can inflict.
We don't need it.
Get rid of gasohol, and our food prices will drop. Not just on corn. But on food consumers buy that's involved with corn; pork and beef for obvious examples.
"When your demand for corn stays high, the price tends to go up, and your hog farmer gets disgruntled ..." U.S. President Bush (younger) 07/02/14