Ted Cruz: I Support an All-of-the-Above Energy Strategy; Remove the Ethanol Blend Wall

(NBC News Meet the Press) ... CHUCK TODD: Let's talk about two issues here that seem to be potentially tripping you up here in Iowa. One is ethanol. You have come out against these subsidies, you called it a "gravy train." A lot of Iowans, including the Republican Governor doesn't like it. But I want to put these numbers. Isn't it understandable why Iowans like these subsidies? Ethanol biodiesel support more than 46,000 jobs, they've generated $2.5 billion in income for Iowa households. This is a state with unemployment under 4%. This is an important part of their economy.

No, absolutely. And listen, my view on energy, we should pursue all of the above. We ought to be pursuing every energy source.

But with no mandates and subsidies. And you know what, the people who are attacking me on this are lobbyists and Democrats. And the reason they're attacking--

No, his son is a lobbyist who makes hundreds of thousands of dollars lobbying on ethanol. So his family makes a ton of money. And the lobbyists very much want to keep Iowa focused on the ethanol mandate, because it keeps Iowa dependent on Washington. It means every year, they've got to go back to Washington and maintain the mandate. The lobbyists get paid, the politicians get paid.

I'm going to eliminate all the subsidies. No subsidies for oil and gas, no subsidies for anybody. But the other piece that is very important and that's resonating is I'm going to also tear down the EPA's ethanol blend wall, which means make it legal to sell mid-level blends of ethanol. And that, in turn, can expand ethanol's share of the marketplace by 60%, but not based on mandates or subsidies, based on the free market.

It's so clear you've spent a lot of time in Iowa. Look what you're talking about, mid-level fuel cells, all these combinations. But at the end of the day, how does this not hurt the Iowa economy? And that's what Governor Branstad is saying. A vote for you is going to hurt the economy.

But Chuck, the point I made, this actually would expand the Iowa economy. Right now, ethanol is banging into the R.F.S. It's essentially, the blend wall is a cap. As people in Iowa know, as I travel around and do town halls, ethanol's not expanding its market share, because the EPA is preventing it from doing it. And by the way, no other candidate has pledged to remove the blend wall.

No other candidate is focusing on the future for ethanol. And you know someone who joined me on my bus tour across the state? A fellow named Dave VanderGriend. He built more than half of the ethanol plants in the state of Iowa. He is the one who estimates that you could see a 60% market increase. And you know who's hurt by my plan? The lobbyists in Washington. And the people who are helped are Iowa farmers and jobs here in the state of Iowa. READ MORE WATCH VIDEO and MORE (The Iowa Republican)