Byron Dorgan: “I had not intended to come to the floor to make a few comments today until I read a story about a press conference that…”

“I had not intended to come to the floor to make a few comments today until I read a story about a press conference that was held in the Senate here yesterday by some Senators about farm policy. A group of Senators held a press conference on farm policy of this country and said, ``We've got a good, solid farm policy. The problem is not the farm bill. The problem is the farm bill is not being implemented properly.'' We have a good, solid farm policy? Are they kidding? What planet are they living on if they think we have a good, solid farm policy? What we have is a new farm policy written by people who don't know much about farming and it is called the Agricultural Market Transition Act, and what it is transitioning is family farmers straight out of business. Farm families are going broke in our State in record numbers. In fact, there are more auction sales of family farmers this year than ever before, and they have had so many auction sales of family farmers in North Dakota that they have had to call auctioneers out of retirement to handle the sales. There is a lot more than statistics about losing these farmers. Farmers plant a seed in the spring and then hope it will grow. They hope it doesn't hail and insects don't come and the crop doesn't get diseased. And if it does come above the ground and then eventually if they escape all those weather disasters, they harvest in the fall and they hope maybe they will get a decent price for their crop.”