Published: 05-15-08
Congressman Says Producers Need Certainty But Non-Ag Related Earmarks Set Bad Precedent
Washington DC – Congressman Mac Thornberry today voted in favor of the 2008 Farm Bill. “A year after this bill should have been passed the Democratic Leadership in the House finally allowed the bill to come to a vote” said Thornberry. “This is clearly not the Farm Bill I would have written but with crops already in the ground producers deserve the certainty this bill provides.”
Thornberry a rancher from Donley County noted that “As fewer and fewer Members of Congress are personally involved in agriculture or represent Districts where agriculture is the dominant industry in the economy more provisions that have nothing to do with production agriculture have crept into the Farm Bill. This is a bad precedent for future Farm Bills.”
Thornberry cited special interest earmarks benefiting the salmon fishing industry a ski resort in Vermont and other non-agricultural interests as problems with the conference committee report on the bill.
“We had a good group of Members from Texas and Oklahoma working on this bill producers by-and-large favored it and I think given the election year politics in Washington this was as good a bill as we were going to be able to pass” concluded Thornberry.
“This bill will help give farmers and ranchers the tools they need to stay on their land to keep producing America’s food and fiber in a very competitive world market. However I remain concerned that despite today’s high commodity prices farm margins remain tight due to skyrocketing input costs particularly costs related to oil and energy. The House Leadership must take action on energy; getting gas prices down will help farmers ranchers and all of us who live in rural America.”
