Will American farmers continue get Federal help to grow biodiesel feedstock? Under the current compromise in the Farm Bill that's going through a reauthorization, the answer to that question is yes. But the White House is apparently going to veto the biodiesel provisions that allow farmers who make up to $2.5m a year still qualify for crop subsidies. Rumor is that an official verdict might be coming out today sometime.

The National Biodiesel Board (NBB), for its part, likes the compromise and said so in a press release that came out late last week. The issue revolves around the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) Bioenergy program, which the NBB says is "a key element in America's energy solution." Unfortunately for farmers, feedstock costs are jumping up in price (what isn't, these days? Houses, I guess). The CCC Bioenergy program is worth $300 million.

[Source: National Biodiesel Board, Domestic Fuel]

Photo: Saul Loeb, AFP/Getty Images

Now we know a bit more about the White House's U-Turn on global warming. President Bush made a speech in the Rose Garden today calling for a stop to greenhouse gas emissions growth in the U.S. by 2025. As NPR phrased it, that's when babies born this year will be in high school.

As we heard earlier this week, the White House is afraid that changes to the status quo that might come about thanks to things like the legal challenges about the EPA's ability to regulate greenhouse gases could result in a regulatory trainwreck on greenhouse gas issues. Bush said today that he was concerned that legislation that Congress is looking to pass could hurt economic growth. The President did not issue a lot of details about his cautious plan that is far weaker than European plans, but that didn't stop Democrats from saying it was too little, too late. Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-California) called it "worse than doing nothing ... the height of irresponsibility."

[Source: NPR]

U-turn. Waking up. Flip flop. Call it what you want (the Washington Times, headed by the very strange Sun Myung Moon, called it "changing course"), but the White House might be getting ready to call on Congress to pass a bill that deals with global warming. According to the Mooney Times (the only paper that seems to have talked to anyone - every other source online just references the Times article), White House officials are fearing a "regulatory nightmare" - thanks to those lawsuits over the EPA's ability to regulate greenhouse gases, for example - if they don't pass a law quickly. White House spokesperson Dana Perino said the regulations were headed into "train wreck" territory. One anonymous official said that the administration hopes that "the debate over [global warming] is over, and it is time to do something." O rly?

The Times writes that Republicans in Congress apparently think the White House is "making a mistake" by going down this road. Funny, they didn't speak up all the other times mistakes were made.

[Source: Washington Times, ]

Two days ago, we told you President Bush said he was unaware some analysts were predicting $4 for a gallon of gas in the U.S.. The day before Bush made those remarks, White House press secretary Dana Perino was actually asked about gas prices and she said "we're mindful of it." Yesterday, when asked if Bush was "joking around" when he said he did not know their was talk of $4 gas, the White House said that "the President's point was that neither his advisors nor Energy Department analysts are at this point forecasting $4-a-gallon gasoline."

But $4.00 gas is actually here today is some parts of the country. What does the White House have to say to that? "I think that the national average, as of earlier this week, was $3.15, according to the Energy Department and other surveys" says the White House. The EIA actually says $3.13 and "other surveys" must mean things like the AAA survey, which says $3.16. So, the White House uses multiple surveys for the average price of gas but only use a single, government source for predicting gas prices? That makes perfect sense because the EIA has been so incredibly accurate and its predictions have never changed (/sarcasm).

The price of a barrel of oil went over $103 recently and it's reasonable to think that, as a former oil man, the president knows $4 for a gallon of gas is very possible, even if he didn't see the predictions. Perhaps he was trying to defuse what might have been seen as an endorsement of the $4 prediction in the question, a number the EIA has not officially predicted. However, his appearing to have "no clue" on what analysts are predicting, as the CNN video below the fold says, is more disconcerting to some than the actual $4 predictions themselves.

[Source: The White House]

The Congress finally passed the energy bill today, which includes a 35 miles per gallon CAFE standard and the White House says Bush will sign it Wednesday. Even though Bush threatened to veto the bill several times and he still thinks the CAFE standard could have gone "farther and faster," he's on board now. Go figure. Anyway, here is exactly what press secretary Dana Perino said:

Tomorrow we look forward to, hopefully, passing -- the President signing the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. That bill will be voted on for final passage in the House later today. In January, the President announced his 20-in-10 initiative, a comprehensive plan for a more secure, cleaner energy future, which would reduce our consumption of gasoline by 20 percent over 10 years. He has pushed Congress to pass this legislation all year. And the bill would increase fuel economy and expand the use of renewable fuels; it will save billions of gallons of fuel, expand our energy security and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

While the President's alternative fuel standard and CAFE proposal would have gone farther and faster, we are pleased that Congress has worked together on a bipartisan way that provides the chance for the President to sign a bill that does not include tax increases.

So, tomorrow, AutoblogGreen will probably show you a video of Bush handing out pens and smiling as he signs the first CAFE standard increase in over 30 years into law. I thought they would all be on vacation and the bill would never become law but they actually got something done. I'm little shocked. Can we say greens won this one?

Related:

• Bush might veto the energy bill
• White House threatens to veto energy bill again
• Video: Dingell admits defeat, will vote for energy bill
• Rep. John Dingell drops his fuel economy proposal

[Source: White House]