Jack Kingston: “I want to speak also on this farm crisis. I represent coastal Georgia, 18 southeast Georgia counties. But to the entire…”

“I want to speak also on this farm crisis. I represent coastal Georgia, 18 southeast Georgia counties. But to the entire State of Georgia, the farm crisis has been devastating. The coastal area that I represent, Savannah, Brunswick, and Hinesville, often get hit by hurricanes. And when they get hit by hurricanes, it is easy to get FEMA, the Federal Emergency Management Association, to come in, or GEMA, the Georgia Emergency Management Association, people to come in; because we have visual images, trees that have crashed through the roofs of houses, people who have lost their homes, businesses that are wiped out and then have power shortages for days at a time or refrigeration equipment that closes down and a product that goes rotten. They have boats that have been washed ashore and landed on Main Street. We have that kind of visual image when a hurricane hits, and so it is a little bit easier to get help. People come in. They send ice. They send chain saws. They send bulldozers. They write checks. The Red Cross comes in, the Salvation Army. We have been hit by such a crisis, but it is not quite as visible, and it is the farm crisis. We have lost $700 million in crop damage to the State of Georgia alone. I believe, listening to colleagues from all over the country, Democrats and Republicans alike, that the damage nationally may be as high as $3-, $4-, $5-, potentially $6 billion. It is tremendous.…”