Iowa Sen. Charles Grassley said on Twitter that President Trump called him and “he assured me he’s pro-ethanol … he knows that ethanol is good, good, good.” The phone call came on the same day the Senate Judiciary Committee, which Grassley chairs, said it would interview Trump’s son, Donald Jr., in coming weeks as part of the Russia investigation.
Grassley is a bulldog supporter of biofuels and Trump was outspoken in support of ethanol during the presidential campaign. A Grassley spokesman told the Washington Post that the call lasted about two minutes and also touched on Hurricane Harvey and former Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad, now the U.S. ambassador to China.
“The timing of the call…raised questions about why the president had chosen to engage Grassley at this juncture,” said the Post. A White House official said Trump wanted to quash rumors in the ethanol industry that the administration was cooling towards the fuel. The comment period ends this week on the EPA’s proposed biofuel targets for 2018.