Bob Dole: “tobacco farmers across the Southeast have been anxiously waiting for this day--the day when they can see hope for the…”

“tobacco farmers across the Southeast have been anxiously waiting for this day--the day when they can see hope for the future. During the past 6 months, Senator McConnell, Senator Bunning, and I have been working with all of the other Senators from major tobacco States to craft legislation that will enable tobacco-dependent communities to survive. The Tobacco Market Transition Act, which we are introducing today, will mark a major change from the current tobacco program, and it will bring a major sigh of relief to countless farm families across the Southeast. For years, the Federal tobacco program created economic opportunity for farm families in North Carolina and other tobacco-producing States. It allowed towns to prosper that would have been hard pressed to make it otherwise. It provided stability when other commodities suffered low prices. It was the standard bearer of all farm programs. Buyers of tobacco would come from all over the world to purchase America's leaf. America's tobacco farmers held the world standard for quality, and they still do today.”