Obama’s ethanol dream team

President-elect Obama’s Cabinet is beginning to look like
a dream team for ethanol.

Obama on Wednesday placed two more supporters of the
corn-based variety renewable fuel in his Cabinet by selecting former Iowa Gov.
Tom Vilsack to lead the Agriculture Department and Sen. Ken Salazar (D-Colo.)
as his Interior secretary.

{mosads}They join incoming Energy Secretary Steven Chu, who has
been an advocate for advancing cellulosic ethanol made from switch-grasses,
wood chips and other inputs.

Rep. Ray LaHood (R-Ill.), another ethanol supporter and
like Vilsack a corn-belt politician, may join Obama’s Cabinet as secretary of
Transportation.

The president-elect himself is an advocate for ethanol
and renewable fuels. Obama has supported the farm bill approved by Congress
last year that boosted ethanol production, and he also backed  energy
legislation to strengthen renewable fuels.

The appointments have some high-profile ethanol opponents
worried, while ethanol supporters appear optimistic.

“The worry is if the Cabinet gets too crowded with people
who are drunk on ethanol, we won’t have the policy discussions we need,” said
Ken Cook, the president of the Environmental Working Group. Cook’s group argues
that the massive production of corn-based ethanol has damaged the environment,
wasted tax dollars and contributed to high food prices earlier this year.

However, Matt Hartwig, a spokesman for the Renewable
Fuels Association, said Obama “has put together the right group of people” to
move the country toward the stage where it will be producing ethanol from more
than just corn.

“Renewable fuels also play a central role in stimulating
the economy and creating green jobs,” said Hartwig, whose organization has
floated ethanol-friendly ideas to Obama’s transition team for an upcoming
stimulus package. “The team he’s put in place understands that.”

Mark Maslyn, director of policy for the American Farm
Bureau Federation, offered praise for the nominations of Vilsack and Salazar,
who he said were both proponents of renewable fuels.

There could be some differences among the Cabinet
members. Chu, a Nobel physics laureate and head of the Lawrence Berkeley
National Laboratory, has criticized corn-based ethanol in the past while
supporting cellulosic ethanol.

Obama and other members of his Cabinet hail from corn
states and have supported programs to increase ethanol production from corn.
Iowa is the top state producer of corn, while Illinois ranks second.

At the same time, Vilsack and Obama have also repeatedly
called for more research and, eventually, production of cellulosic ethanol.

Another ethanol supporter in the Cabinet is former Senate
Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.), who was presented with an award for his
support of ethanol in 2005 by the American Coalition for Ethanol.

Daschle, who has offered advice to business on renewable
fuels in Washington, will head the Department of Health and Human Services,
where he’ll be busy with healthcare reform. Yet he has already spoken out
publicly about ethanol since being nominated for Obama’s Cabinet. On Dec. 4,
Daschle called for the extension of a subsidy for ethanol subsidy that goes to
refiners, but said it should be changed to benefit producers of ethanol.

Lisa Jackson, Obama’s pick to run the Environmental
Protection Agency, and Carol Browner, who will head a new office coordinating energy
and climate policy, could also have roles in determining how the Obama
administration pursues ethanol. Hartwig said neither nomination is a problem.

“There’s nothing about this team that gives us pause,” he
said.

Cook said his organization is looking forward to working
with Vilsack, who has advocated limits on farm payments and who Cook said has a
reputation for being “fair-minded and open-minded.”

Cook said Obama’s team will have to deal with the
environmental impact the ramped-up production of corn-based ethanol is having.
He argues the incoming administration should stop and ask if an investment in
ethanol will lead the country toward more green jobs, or whether it is simply
setting up a wasteful subsidy program.