Barbara Boxer: “Yes. That is exactly the point of the blue-ribbon panel of the EPA. That is exactly what MTBE does as well. We are…”

“Yes. That is exactly the point of the blue-ribbon panel of the EPA. That is exactly what MTBE does as well. We are dealing with the potential that we could really have problems. No one hopes more than I do that in the end it is all going to be safe; that would be a winner. But we cannot stand here and say that. If we don't learn from history, we are doomed to repeat it. We went through the electricity crisis. We know what happens when supply is manipulated. Unfortunately, what my friend said on the floor may become true. Manipulation is already being discussed on what to charge for ethanol. We lived through the MTBE tragedy. I was one of the leaders; I had the first bill to ban MTBE. In fact, a long time ago we got over 56 votes to ban MTBE. No one can say I have been reluctant to do that. As I said, I am not hostile to ethanol; I am very open to it, but at the same time we need to know what we are doing here. We need to be careful about the amount we are mandating so it isn't overwhelming but also difficult for people to charge exorbitant rates. We have to be careful that there are not a few suppliers and there is price manipulation. We have to be careful with that. We have to be careful that we have the infrastructure we need to bring in the ethanol.”