Liquid Pork by The Editors on National Review Online

http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=MGZhNzZlMmUwYzlkNzgyYmYxZmVmNWYwOWMxOTVkOTU=

The government is simply no good at picking winners and losers in the energy market (or any market, for that matter). Renewable energy works when it comes from consumer-driven innovation, not from politics. The government has been subsidizing inefficient forms of renewable energy for decades, and it has gotten us nowhere. Ethanol subsidies are a case in point: The 2005 energy bill mandated the use of ethanol in gasoline. As farmers shifted corn production from food to fuel, corn prices (and, consequently, meat and dairy prices) skyrocketed. Corn ethanol, inefficient as a gasoline additive, had a negative impact on gas mileage as refiners used more of it. 

What did the government do in response to this failure? It increased the ethanol mandate five-fold in 2007. Now the Gang of 16 wants even more subsidies for biofuels, though the emphasis has shifted from corn-based ethanol to other, more experimental forms made from trees and grass. These biofuel subsidies explain why the gang has attracted Republicans like Saxby Chambliss, Johnny Isakson, John Thune, and Bob Corker, all of whom come from states that stand to reap tremendous financial benefits from biofuel handouts. We should call this what it is: A sop to a large and growing special-interest group.