Political Quotes

“Madam President, tomorrow we are going to be taking up the nomination of former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack and former Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack and now the nominee to be Secretary of Agriculture again. I fully support this nomination. He has received support from farm and commodity groups across the country, but, more important to this Senator, he received praise from family farmers in Iowa. However, a few critics of the former Iowa Governor have raised questions about his record on addressing racial inequities during his time as Secretary of Agriculture from 2009 until 2017. I would like to take this opportunity to set the record straight. I have long worked toward ensuring Black farmers receive justice for the decades of discrimination that occurred through many different administrations of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, both Republican and Democratic. People have often asked me why in the world a Senator from Iowa would get involved in this issue. While there aren't many Black farmers in Iowa, my State has a long history of fighting against oppression of African Americans dating to the Underground Railroad. There is no reason to stop that trend. In my first discussion with then-to-be Secretary of Agriculture Vilsack in 2009, I brought up my work in what is called the Pigford consent decree. A provision I led in the 2008 farm bill enabled more Black farmers to bring their claims forward and authorized the U.S.…”