Sanford Bishop: “when jurisdiction over farm commodity programs is transferred from the Agriculture Committee to the Budget and Rules…”

“when jurisdiction over farm commodity programs is transferred from the Agriculture Committee to the Budget and Rules Committees, it is an unprecedented attempt by the Republican leadership in this body to stifle the influence of Members who represent the interests of our farmers. It is an abuse of power. It is a slap in the face of America's farmers. It should outrage everyone who is concerned about the future of rural communities. There is one thing you can say about this development: It may be an abuse of power, and it is bipartisan abuse. It not only seeks to shut out the voice of Democrats on the Agriculture Committee, like myself, it shuts out the voices of Republican Members who also oppose radical changes that would effectively destroy critically needed commodity programs. Reforms are needed. We need to cut the costs of these programs. We need to make them more market oriented. Farmers understand this. The area of Georgia I represent grows more peanuts than any place in the world. My colleague from the neighboring Eighth District and I have introduced a new peanut program that eliminates Government costs. It represents dramatic change. But, evidently, this is not enough. The majority leadership will evidently not be satisfied until commodity programs that give our farmers a more level playing field in the world marketplace are destroyed.”