CHICAGO -- With President Obama continuing to campaign in Iowa today, it's important to note how local editorial boards have publicly rebuked Mitt Romney's opposition to the Wind Energy Tax Credit, which is set to expire at the end of this year. Unlike President Obama, who supports extending the tax credit, Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan want to let the credits expire, which would put thousands of jobs at risk in Iowa and other states. The Romney-Ryan plan isn't just bad for jobs in Iowa - it's also deeply unpopular with voters and Republican officials in Iowa, who strongly support extending the tax credit and continuing to support the state's growing wind energy industry.
Below is just a snapshot of local coverage from Romney-Ryan's opposition to the tax credit:
Romney should revisit wind tax issue
Cedar Rapids Gazette // Editorial
Romney opposes an extension of the federal wind energy tax credit when it expires this year. That stand is at odds with the entire Iowa congressional delegation, including Reps. Tom Latham and Steve King and Sen. Chuck Grassley, all Republicans, as well as Republican Gov. Terry Branstad, who says Romney just needs a little more education on the topic. ...We agree with the governor.
Our opinion: On wind energy, Romney blows it
Dubuque Telegraph Herald // Editorial
Romney reveals a lack of understanding of the importance of wind energy. ...Among the flaws in this logic is that subsidies give wind an unfair advantage. Over coal? Over natural gas? These industries have the infrastructure built over a century of being consumers' only option. As wind energy attempts to make inroads, the subsidies are merely helping it gain footing.
The Register editorial: Wind tax credits should be extended
Des Moines Register // Editorial
Mitt Romney, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, may have tilted at the wrong windmills when he said he would allow wind energy tax credits to expire. The incentive for erecting wind generators is very popular in Iowa and other Midwestern states that are harnessing the clean power of the prairie zephyrs. ...Iowa is especially big on wind. This state is ranked No. 2, behind only Texas, in wind generation capacity, and it employs more people than any other state building and maintaining wind towers and turbines.
Turning up the heat on renewable fuels
Spencer Daily Publisher // Paula Buenger, Publisher
Add to the conversation the Romney campaign's pledge to do away with the wind energy tax credits if he is elected. Without support for ethanol or wind energy, the US suddenly becomes much more dependent on foreign oil and, as a result, more interested in the affairs of state in countries we really would rather not be in. I have a feeling the heat will stay high on this issue for a long time to come.
Editorial: Wanting more details on Romney's PTC position
West Branch Times // Editorial
Staff members of the likely Republican candidate have recently said that he would favor ending the PTC, but they did not state whether he would favor phasing it out or ending it immediately. The PTC directly benefits Acciona Windpower in West Branch because it provides tax credits of 2.2 cents per kilowatt hour from wind facilities in service before Dec. 31, 2012. Both Republicans and Democrats from Iowa's Congressional caucus support the PTC because it helps support 6,000 to 7,000 jobs here.
Wind energy tax breaks are bipartisan in Iowa
Ames Tribune // Editorial
The Iowa Republicans are right. Wind is important. It's big business here, and Iowa is a leader in the industry... But wind energy is also a young industry, competing with the deeply entrenched fossil fuel industry ? which also receives billions in government subsidies every year. Wind needs a help a little longer to get established.
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