Cruz Loses RFS Leverage
Source: By Kelsey Tamborrino, Politico • Posted: Wednesday, January 24, 2018
If Texas Sen. Ted Cruz thought he could get Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley to yield on the Renewable Fuel Standard by indirectly blocking Grassley’s grandson from getting a job, that leverage is now gone. The theory went like this: Cruz’s hold on Iowa Agriculture Secretary Bill Northey’s nomination for a USDA job would create a logjam that would prevent the governor from naming Iowa state legislator Pat Grassley to the job, a rumor first reported by the Des Moines Register. But the senior Grassley never relented in his support for the RFS, and on Monday the younger Grassley announced on Twitter that he’s running for reelection to the Iowa State Assembly, essentially removing himself from contention for a position that never came open.