Tom Harkin: “I will read one sentence from the editorial: "The reality of the situation is that there will be no disaster money…”

“I will read one sentence from the editorial: "The reality of the situation is that there will be no disaster money before we go home unless we provide budget offsets," said the chairman of the House Agriculture Committee, Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va. Easy for him to say; farmers in his State are covered by the hurricane disaster assistance package. He doesn't have to worry about whether it is emergency money. What kind of selfishness is that around here? If you are from a State where you get the hurricane disaster assistance, to heck with everybody else? The Des Moines Register editorial said: Cutting farm programs to pay for the assistance would amount to taking money from growers in the Midwest and giving it to producers in drought-stricken areas of Montana, the Dakotas and other Plains states. I want to help those farmers. They should be helped. But as Senator Daschle said, they should not take it out of one pocket and put it in another.”