Transcript for April 30

MR. BODMAN: Brazil is a good model. I—the—all I can—that’s all—you know, that’s all I can say, Tim, Brazil is a good model. And that’s exactly what we’re trying to do. That’s why their—the increase in use of corn for, for generation of ethanol, that’s why the president has increased by 50 percent the amount of research that is being done out in our Colorado laboratory, so that we can create ethanol using cellulose, using more...

MR. RUSSERT: How much is he spending—how much are we spending?

MR. BODMAN: We’re spending $150 million.

MR. RUSSERT: That’s it?

MR. BODMAN: We will be spending—but that’s what we need—that’s what we need.

MR. RUSSERT: There’s a company in Idaho that wants to use wheat chaff for cellulosic ethanol...

MR. BODMAN: Right.

MR. RUSSERT: ...and they’re being told they can’t get any federal money.

MR. BODMAN: I don’t know about the name of it, but the—I can’t—you know, I can’t deal with that. I can’t...

MR. RUSSERT: Is that enough money to spend on something that should be, in, in many people’s minds, the equivalent of a Manhattan Project? Let’s get off oil? Is $150 million enough to do that?

MR. BODMAN: I think that the, the—there is a tendency in this town, Tim, to equate volume of money with progress. This is a 50 percent increase in what we’re doing. We’ve done very good work in the laboratory and we’re expecting to be able to look at other feed stocks. This is the idea of producing ethanol using something other than food, a food material, either sugar cane or corn, something that’s cheaper, and wood chips or, or switch grass or other kinds of materials like that. And we think that we’re going to be in, in a good position. The, the, the whole question about pace and speed—this is a research project. This is something that takes time. It is not something that is going to be a function of how much money is spent.

MR. RUSSERT: But if Brazil has done it and done...

MR. BODMAN: Yes.

MR. RUSSERT: ...it relatively quickly...

MR. BODMAN: Yes.

MR. RUSSERT: ...why can’t we do it quickly?

MR. BODMAN: Brazil manufactures ethanol using sugar cane. Our sugar is much more expensive than sugar cane in Brazil and now you’re getting into agricultural policy related to the Ag bill, and it’s a different matter.

MR. RUSSERT: So how long before you think that we will be off of oil and onto ethanol?

MR. BODMAN: Well, we will be in a position over the next three or four years, I believe—and again this is a function of research. It takes time to, to, to figure this out, but where we will have designed the enzymes and we will be in a position that we can then start the conversion. You first have to determine what the enzymes are before you can then start to expand and build these plants all over America. And it’s going to be something that would not just be in the Midwest, but would be in the East Coast and the West Coast where these grasses are, are available.

MR. RUSSERT: Daniel Yergin, can this country do what Brazil did and convert itself from...

DR. YERGIN: Well, it took Brazil 30 years to do it. It took three years to convert the cars, but 30 years to do it and Brazil’s gasoline consumption is about 3 percent of ours. We have to remember the scale. I think that we will see more ethanol in, in our fuel thing. The key thing, the holy grail, the breakthrough is can you take this waste product and turn it in to fuel? And I look around and not only government spending, but see a lot of private venture capital money trying to unlock the key to that mystery.

MR. RUSSERT: Mr. Cramer, do you believe that the United States can convert from oil to ethanol and other byproducts?

MR. CRAMER: Well, I would tell you that why don’t we start by waving the 50 cent tax we put on the Brazilian ethanol to protect our own people? Why don’t we do that now instead of giving 100 bucks back. Make all these noises. Why don’t we just stop the tax?

MR. RUSSERT: So import Brazilian ethanol?

MR. CRAMER: Well, it’s only because the government refuses to waive the import...

MR. RUSSERT: Senator, can you go along with that? It’s going to hurt your farmers?

SEN. DURBIN: I’ll tell you why we won’t do it, the same reason Brazil didn’t do it. They had to build their indigenous domestic industry and so they didn’t allow ethanol to come in from other countries. We are now building our indigenous ethanol industry. All over Illinois, all over the United States.

MR. CRAMER: But in the interim why not just waive it?

SEN. DURBIN: In the mean...

MR. CRAMER: Why not make it cheaper for America?

SEN. DURBIN: At this point in time, I tell you there is a boom now and opportunities for these ethanol production facilities. I want to see that happen. You know why? Because in downstate, small town America, that I represent as well, these are the best job opportunities they can find. These are business opportunities in communities that have otherwise almost given up.  They have a chance now. And if you’re going to allow us to become, allow this import of fuel from Brazil we may find ourselves as dependent on foreign ethanol as we are today on foreign oil.

MR. RUSSERT: Senator, in order to continue this drive you’re concerned about global warming, you’re concerned about oil and carbon gases and things, would you be willing to expand nuclear power in the U.S.?

SEN. DURBIN: I have trouble with that because I—we still have not resolved what we’re going to do with the waste from these nuclear power plants. I just went to Braidwood Nuclear Facility outside of Chicago. Still serious problems with environmental issues that threaten the village of Godley, Illinois, directly in the, in the shadow of this plant.

MR. RUSSERT: So you would take oil and coal over nuclear?

MORE FROM MEET THE PRESS

Meet the Press Section Front

Nov. 8: Casey, Barbour, Rendell, roundtable, Brokaw Nov. 1: Tim Geithner, David Plouffe, roundtable Oct. 25: Cornyn, Schumer, Burnett, Sorkin, roundtable Oct. 18: Jarrett, Dodd, Kyl, Shriver, Podesta Oct. 11: Levin, Graham, McCaffrey, Myers, roundtable Oct. 4: Ambassador Susan Rice, roundtable Sept. 27: Bill Clinton, Paterson, Kyl, Webb Sept. 20: President Obama, Sen. Graham, Rep. Boehner, roundtable Sept. 13: Durbin, Cornyn, Dean, Gingrich, roundtable Sept. 6: Axelrod, roundtable Meet the Press Section Front   Add Meet the Press headlines to your news reader: