Posted on 02/28/2008 1:45:36 PM PST by SmithL
Washington - -- As Sens. Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton toured the land denouncing special interests, giveaways to the rich, home foreclosures, job losses and a middle-class squeeze, back in Washington House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other top Democrats met behind closed doors on a plan to raise taxes and cut food stamp money to protect billions of dollars for agribusiness, a sector of the economy that is booming.
The negotiators agreed Tuesday to find $10 billion in extra money in a last-ditch effort to save the farm bill, once seen as an opportunity to reform commodity programs and divert scarce funds to conservation, nutrition, organic research and California fruit and vegetable growers who are locked out of the Depression-era programs. The money is needed to appease these interests while still maintaining the commodity subsidies. Yet in proposals so far, those areas get trimmed to keep the subsidies flowing.
The subsidies demanded by the farm lobby would help big corn, wheat and soybean growers in areas where income is shattering records, credit is flowing and real estate values soaring.
Because of government ethanol subsidies and rising demand for grain in developing nations, grain farmers are enjoying such whopping price increases that food inflation is becoming a worry. U.S. bakers are even urging a restriction on grain exports to try to dampen prices.
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
This is a fine mess the demoRATS have gotten us into! While they block any new refineries, oil well drilling most everywhere and are opposed to any nuclear power plants... they’ll move to keep farm and corn subsidizes flowing so they can lock up the farm vote!
FUND the farmers of California. KEEP MEXICO in a struggle, by giving $$ gov´t welfare benefit to American farmers so they can produce CHEAP and unfairly compete with people in Canada and Mexico. California farmers DO NEED $$ to pay their illegal migrant workers. DO NOT create a level playing field, California farmers want to give us all more NUTS and FRUIT, (sarc)
Thankfully we have two political parties.
One year the democrats fight for farm subsidies and the republicans pretend to fight against them.
Then they go to dinner and play golf together.
The next year the republicans fight for farm subsidies and the democrats pretend to be against them.
Then they go to dinner and play golf together.
Farmers are doing quite well right now without a farm bill, so this isn’t really the hot button issue Hillary or Osama might have hoped.
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