Arkansas Blog

normally i'd not bring up something that might reflect well on the Bush Administration, but it is so damn rare to read of them doing anything right that the curiousity factor compels me to share it.

from Dan Froomkin 30 April, Washington Post (name/link)

Parallel Universe Watch

You'll never guess who's complaining about subsidies for millionaires -- and who's defending them.

Believe it or not, it's Bush who's fighting for income caps in the pending Farm Bill -- and Democratic leaders who are balking.

David Rogers writes for Politico: "The White House mounted a last push for more reforms in a pending Farm Bill Tuesday, with President Bush accusing lawmakers of continuing subsidies to 'multimillionaire' producers at a time of rising prices at the grocery store.

"Thus far, House-Senate negotiators have been willing to exclude only wealthy individuals who earn $500,000 or more in nonfarm income. But there were signs of new movement Tuesday night, and the administration is pressing for a 'hard cap' that would deny commodity payments to even full time farmers whose average adjusted gross income over three years exceeded $500,000. . . .

"For the White House, the income cap remains a signature issue after first wanting a still lower $200,000 ceiling. And for this Republican president, Tuesday's press conference was a rare example of using the class card to full political effect at a time of rising food prices."

What he heck is going on here? I asked Ken Cook, president of the nonprofit Environmental Working Group and close observer of the Farm Bill. "It's a parallel universe," he said. "You would think that Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid would be the ones demanding reform. . . and George Bush would be the one defending the wealthy individuals in this game, but it's been the exact opposite."

Cook, who has a blog called Mulch, isn't sure what's motivating Bush. "I don't know why this issue of paying subsidies to wealthy people got under his skin," Cook said, "But it did."

As for the Democrats? "I think it's pretty much been a craven political calculation," Cook said.

Does the amount of government subsidy paid to a farmer depend on what they are growing?

More specifically, do they get more aid for growi ng plants used for ethanol and biofuels or do they get more aid for growing plants used for food?

Blanche Lincoln is 3/4th a Mark W. Pryor. She is almost as guilty as he is for the Cheney-Bush mess. Re-electing her will not help most of us. We can do better and we can't depend on the Republicans to put forth a better person.....Republican and better person are 3 words that never go in a sentence together.

If you look around, we got some superstar people in this state. Blanche and Mark are not 2 of them. We can do better. The next President needs the help of 2 good Democratic Senators and added together Lincoln and Pryor fail to make even 1 good Democrat. We need the Rebekah Kennedy miracle this year and to spend the next 2 years finding a real Democrat to run against Blanche Lincoln. As long as we elect Special Interest jerks we'll alway remain in the 48th spot. Be smarter! Vote better!

Blanche is in DC farming out pork to the likes of Cargill and Weyerhaeuser... the folks who need it least.

Oh yea, Miss Blanche, the multi-millionaires best friend in Arkansas. She was right in there to deny meaningful bankruptcy protection to average citizens, but lo and behold she sure favors giving businesses the right to declare bankruptcy and cancel out their pension obligations. What a gal.
Most of the morons who are victims of crap like this will never catch on and continue to send her back. It's gonna take a deep recession-depression to open some eyes.

street jazz writes:
"According to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette ("More firms turning to bankruptcy" - May 7), over 200 commercial bankruptcies were filed in Arkansas in the first four months of 2008, as companies - hurt by the economy - are seeking protection from their creditors.

Nationwide, over 18,000 firms have sought such protection in the same period, while 43, 000 went into bankruptcy in 2007.

With great fanfare, the United States Congress passed a bill sometime back that made it far more difficult for individuals to seek such protection. Blanche Lambert Lincoln (whom the Democrat-Gazette fondly refers to as "Miss Blanche") voted proudly [for] this bill.

Will she and the rest of the U.S. Congress be in favor of legislation with makes it just as difficult for companies to file bankruptcy?"

Like it or not:

Blanche Lincoln: Senator for life
Mark Pryor: Senator for life
Vic Snyder: Congressman for life
Marion Berry: Congressman for life
Mike Ross: Congressman until he runs for governor
John Boozman: Congressman for life

You know that Minute Rice you put on the table every night? That sandwich bun you ate for lunch? I bet you didn't do a damn thing but go to the Harvest Foods and pay a couple bucks for it. Shouldn't the people who grow the food we eat every day (and, sometimes, take for granted) make good money?

I'm not going to deny that SOME farmers and farm-families misuse the farm bill to make good money. However the majority of hard working farmers like my dad, his farming partner, and their friends around Pocahontas (and, no doubt, throughout the country) don't score $750K a year. They roll out of bed before the sun peaks up from the horizon, bust it all day long in the oppressive, muggy summer heat, deal with flooding AND drought, and don't wade out of the rice field until dark-30. Come fall, they hope that the price of rice or wheat is high enough to cover the loans they had to take out to buy the seed, the fertilizer, and the diesel fuel. They work hard for what money they make and without the farm bill they wouldn't be able to make any. Then where would we get our whole grain bread or our rice pilaf?

If I have one complaint about the farm bill it's that it doesn't help enough farmers.

This post is not meant, however, to absolve Sens. Lincoln and Pryor of their Republicrat politics.

You know that "BLANK" you "BLANK" every night? That "BLANK" you "BLANK" for "BLANK"? I bet you didn't do a damn thing but go to the "BLANK" and pay a couple bucks for it. Shouldn't the people who "BLANK" the "BLANK" we "BLANK" every day (and, sometimes, take for granted) make good money?

If you are referring to the people that got us into this predicament by selling out their children, parents, neighbors & country not once but twice; by all means, coddle the guilty. As for the usurper Bush, if he says it, it is a lie. Thus, by vetoing a "reform" bill he continues the gravy train unabated.

"Sin with the multitude, and your responsibility and guilt are as great and as truly personal, as if you alone had done the wrong." Tyron Edwards