Last week's farm bill debacle in the House of Representatives highlighted a fundamental disconnect. My friends in the Republican majority felt that nutrition for poor people was not a priority because they were concerned about increasing…

I appreciate the relentless focus on the nutrition programs at risk; but remember, this is going to be the costliest farm bill in history. It contains no reform. It concentrates Federal cash on the largest, most profitable agribusiness. It…

I have an amendment at the desk that will help stop Congress from taking the Corps of Engineers back to the 1980s. In 2007, Congress passed legislation requiring the Army Corps of Engineers to update its principles and guidelines, the P&G…

The dispatch with which the committee has moved forward made it not possible for me to offer the amendment that I was going to offer formally, but I just intend to deal with the issue very briefly for the committee and look forward to…

I would ask my colleagues a very simple question: Can this Congress approve legislation that is supported by over 85 percent of the American public that is truly bipartisan legislation, with distinguished Republican cosponsors, and will…

This is a momentous week--a path to citizenship passing in the Senate, the Supreme Court striking down DOMA, and, on Tuesday, President Obama recommitted his administration to deal with the moral imperative of climate change. All around us…

Minutes ago, a 5-4 decision, written by Justice Kennedy, ruled that DOMA is a violation of the Equal Protection Clause. Today's decision is a monumental step forward in the long march towards GLBT equality. Forty years ago, I chaired a…

There have been assertions that somehow the American sugar industry is down. Because of the changes that were made in the last farm bill, prices soared up to 92 percent. And so there was a temporary increase in American sugar, which…

I support the Dairy Security Act language as it was included in the Committee-passed draft of the Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management Act. Inadvertently, I voted in support of Amendment No. 99, sponsored by Rep. Goodlatte to…

I have an amendment at the desk. The Acting CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment. The text of the amendment is as follows: Beginning on page 197, strike line 18 and all that follows through page 198, line 10 and insert the…

The purpose of the amendment is to help focus on more long-lasting protection for the water, wildlife, and soil. I appreciate what the ranking member said in terms of issues for additional funding for wildlife habitat, and I have another…

The Conservation Reserve Program has sparked major improvements in water quality, wildlife habitat and wetlands. However, high crop and land prices are spurring landowners to once again pull millions of vulnerable acres back under the plow…