Mike Enzi: “Today I wish to speak in favor of the farm bill, which looks close to a vote. Many of my colleagues have already…”

“Today I wish to speak in favor of the farm bill, which looks close to a vote. Many of my colleagues have already expressed how important this legislation is to our country and rural communities. I could not agree more with their statements and was pleased to see the Senate finally begin legislating by considering amendments. I would also like to thank again Chairman Harkin, Ranking Member Chambliss, and the members of the Agriculture Committee for their hard work on this bill. Wyoming's agricultural community has always provided me with great advice on how to approach our Nation's farm policy. Consistently, I hear that livestock producers and growers want to move in a direction that provides greater access to competitive markets and limits Government barriers to conducting business. You see, the producers I have spoken with believe their checks should come from an auctioneer or buyer, not the Government. This is certainly a challenging goal recognizing the competing global pressures on our Nation's farmers and ranchers. However, I can say that the Senate has been able to inject some commonsense reforms in this bill.”