Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I stand before you today to offer one the most important amendments for the family farmer we have ever considered. There have been a number of important amendments already considered during the farm bill debate, and a couple have been adopted, but if we are truly sincere about improving this farm bill for the family farmer we have a golden opportunity in front of us right now. The farm bill reported by the Senate Agriculture Committee fails to adequately target assistance to family farmers and will disproportionately benefit our nation's largest farms. In fact, this farm bill unnecessarily increases the payment limitations established in the Freedom to Farm Act which allowed an individual to receive nearly a half million dollars through subsidy payments. Moreover, the Committee bill fails to address the use of generic commodity certificates which allow farmers to circumvent payment limitations. In recent years, we have heard news reports about large corporate farms receiving millions of dollars in payments through the use of generic certificates. Generic certificates do not benefit family farmers but allow the largest farmers to receive unlimited payments.”