Mitt Romney is spot-on in opposing an extension of the wind-energy tax credit, says Kansas GOP Rep. Mike Pompeo, who serves on the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
“First, an extension continues this unsettling policy trend in which citizens are asked to bear all the risks and gain none of the rewards,” Pompeo writes on
Politico. “This socialization of risks and privatization of profits guarantees disasters for corporate boards, and even their federal overseers can become careless and, in some instances, reckless.”
President Barack Obama is going about alternative-energy policy the wrong way, Pompeo says.
“President Obama talks about the need to ‘invest’ in alternative energy sources. But the reality is that he is not investing his money. He’s spending yours,” Pompeo says.
It’s unclear if it's wise to invest in wind energy, he maintains.
“Wind companies and their lobbyists have, for the last year, been telling all who would listen that the expiration of the tax credit could spell doom for their industry. Obama repeats this claim regularly on the campaign trail,” Pompeo writes.
“But what does that say about the industry? If you need a tax credit to compete, you are probably not that competitive.” In addition, the tax credit likely will cost taxpayers more than $12 billion, Pompeo says.
As for Romney, “his opposition to continuing the wind subsidy is absolutely correct. At some point, an industry has to either succeed or fail on its own merits,” Pompeo writes.
© 2013 Newsmax. All rights reserved.