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Forget the Farm Bill: Noem and House Take Two Extra Weeks Off to Campaign

Dusty Johnson knows how to read Congress. Back in April he said his party and the Congresswoman he wants to succeed would fail to pass a Farm Bill this year. On Friday, Representative Kristi Noem and 429 other members of the United States House of Representatives clocked out two weeks early, with no Farm Bill to send to the President’s desk.

This failure to act leaves some small Farm Bill programs unfunded starting tomorrow:

Yet the looming expiration has more immediate ramifications for 39 so-called orphan programs because they have authorization or funding tied to the 2014 Farm Bill. They include a government-funded trade promotion program utilized by various U.S. agricultural sectors, including some targeted with retaliatory tariffs by China and others.

…Another program that doesn’t have baseline funding after Sept. 30 is for organic agriculture. Also at risk are certain bioenergy and rural business development programs as well as a program to assist military veteran farmers.

In all, the affected programs had estimated mandatory spending amounting to about $2.8 billion during the five-year farm bill, according to a Congressional Research Service report issued in May [Jeff Daniels, “Trade Promotion, Dozens of Other Programs at Risk as Existing Farm Bill Nears Expiration,” CNBC, 2018.09.28].

The House Agriculture Committee provides a full list of the small programs they abandoned before abandoning ship, as well as a statement about the biggest reason that they should be embarrassed about leaving work early:

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, even with a one-year extension in place, farmers and ranchers are denied the certainty that comes with a 5-year farm bill. The farm economy is in a precarious position, and the last thing farmers and ranchers need is more uncertainty [House Agriculture Committee, “Why Extending the Current Farm Bill Won’t Work,” downloaded 2018.09.30].

The House was supposed to meet through October 12. But Republican incumbents like Rep. Noem are in such deep electoral doo-doo that keeping those Farm Bill programs going, not to mention passing a complete federal budget, are minor concerns compared to saving their own political careers.

Besides, Kristi’s husband’s bread and butter, selling crop insurance, isn’t at risk, so she doesn’t need to stick around Washington to make sure someone keeps a check coming in to the Hamlin County hacienda after January.

Noem really checked out of Congress two years ago, six days after we elected her to do two years of honest work on our behalf. Noem’s early release Friday gives us voters two extra weeks to ask her why we should believe she’ll work any harder for us as Governor than she is working for us as Congresswoman right now.

Or maybe we should leave her alone and let her use the two weeks to make an appointment and take a nap.

23 Comments

  1. mike from iowa 2018-09-30 10:01

    Just a subtle reminder of how much winning farmers are doing now.

    Closing cash grain bids offered to producers as of 1:30 p.m. Dollars per bushel, delivered to Interior Iowa Country Elevators. US 2 Yellow Corn Prices were generally 8 to 9 cents lower for a state average of 3.07. US 1 Yellow Soybean Prices were 9 to 10 cents lower for a state average of 7.41.

    Dang them guys should win like this in every trade war Drumpf starts.

  2. jerry 2018-09-30 10:23

    Anyone remember Atlas? 40,000 cows sure as hell don’t. NOem pulled the same sham then as she is doing now, let’s hope that there is not another catastrophe in the making. Dusty Johnson is the same old clown as NOem. We cannot afford to send in the clowns, we need leadership for our ag producers and for our women. Yes, NOem also checked out without reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act. NOem and Dusty hate farmers and they hate women…unless they are Russian.

  3. Sam@ 2018-09-30 11:14

    Cory: I am not sure she ever checked into congress. Seemed to be nothing more than Obituary Fodder for her.

    What are her accomplishments? Apparently a very short list.

  4. Rorschach 2018-09-30 11:18

    Members of congress get paid very generously for not having to show up for work very often. Seems like a pretty sweet gig. After so many years of a mostly no-show job, I’m not sure that Noem can handle the schedule of a governor. “What, you mean I’m expected to be at work more than 3 days a week?”

  5. jerry 2018-09-30 12:31

    The Farm Bill is more critical than ever. You know, China is not going to give in to the US so this stalemate will continue and further draw down farmers profits and value. Either the US nationalizes farmers with a reason to leave their ground in fallow or pay them to put the ground into soil bank. Either way, ag producers need ways to keep their barn doors open. For NOem and the rest of the farm belt representatives to skedaddle from their duties shows further why we do not need their kind in government.

    On a side note, women were left out as well. Women are the glue that bond the ag community together and they were left ignored by NOem and the failed republican politics by not reauthorizing the Violence Against Women’s Act. If you see the Republican’s names who want it reauthorized, you will note that NOem is a NO show. Hates farmers and hates women, that is NOem’s NOmenclature.

    https://katko.house.gov/sites/katko.house.gov/files/wysiwyg_uploaded/FINAL%20VAWA%20Letter.pdf

  6. T 2018-09-30 19:18

    I am very worried for 2019
    Public posting of such doesn’t help,
    Small communities in SD are going to be hit hard, and sd is used tax as no one I mean no one I know is buying any equipment.
    And our chemical rep stopped by to enlightened us with double chemical prices or could go higher in 2019. I hope he is wrong and doing a very bad sales ploy…,,

  7. jerry 2018-09-30 19:38

    T, if ag producers stay the course and send someone as worthless as Dusty Johnson to Washington, then we have not learned a thing. We seriously need to change course as this wreck will not change unless Washington changes. We cannot do that with Dusty Johnson going there, he has proven over and over again that he is a paid shill for party first. On top of all that, we are ageing and the more we do that, the more we will need Medicare and Social Security. With Dusty Johnson in Washington, that is just one more brick removed from the wall of protection as he and they will start to pick away at that to fund their dismantling of social programs…all of them.

  8. T 2018-09-30 20:18

    Jerry
    We are old and in a farming community here.
    The B man has been here I believe and am shocked people are wising up and supporting him as repubs monopolize this rural setting
    A little pawn to Washington will not help us in 2019 where we are going to be hit hard At least last fall we had prices to contract,
    There is zilch and markets are going in the wrong direction.
    The drumpf people truly are believing this tariff war will bring us riches in the end. I’m going to be watching A LOT of sinking ships around here, especially if dasty goes to WA

  9. Debbo 2018-09-30 20:46

    I am so glad no one in my family is in farming any more. My father sold out in 1985. At least 3 of his 6 children would have liked to be farmers, but we could see the GOP writing in the soil and opted for other careers.

    There will be much, much more of that if SD sends Johnson and others of his brand to DC.

  10. jerry 2018-09-30 21:03

    T, true that. We lease our place and am worried about that. They are good operators so that is a plus, but when there are market corrections with no place to go, they will keep the place for a while, but anything long term is iffy. I read the news from China and see that there cannot be an about face at this point, there is just to much of a gap without trump and his accomplices making changes. In other words, we started this and we must finish it. This will be a long time deal to get the same results as the rest of the world contracts as well. Johnson will not help in this in the least as he is a lackey for the party and only the party.

    Remember, the Chinese came into the Korean War and gave us a real awakening at the Chosin Reservoir

    “. In late November 1950, a conclusion to the Korean War appeared to be close at hand. U.S., Republic of Korea (ROK), and various U.N. units had advanced deep into North Korea in an attempt to destroy any remaining North Korean People’s Army (NKPA) units and reunite Korea under one government. Some units had even reached the Yalu River, which separated Korea from Communist China.

    But just as U.N. forces launched what was hoped to be the final offensive, hundreds of thousands of Communist Chinese soldiers poured into Korea, overwhelming the U.N. troops and completely changing the nature of the war. Fighting in extreme cold and over rugged terrain, the Americans and their allies were forced to retreat south down the Korean peninsula, suffering heavy casualties along the way.

    For one U.S. Army unit, the intervention of Chinese Communist Forces (CCF) resulted in absolute disaster. The 31st Regimental Combat Team, better known as Task Force MacLean (later known as Task Force Faith), comprised of elements of the 7th Infantry Division, was virtually annihilated east of the Chosin Reservoir. The experiences of the American soldiers who fought and died in the frigid cold of the Chosin area proved to be some of the most harrowing and tragic in the history of the U.S. Army.” https://armyhistory.org/nightmare-at-the-chosin-reservoir/

    The Korean War has never ended. It still exists and that shows to me that there are doors out there that we should not open again.

  11. T 2018-09-30 21:25

    Thumbs up friend
    Highly recommend the documentary on the Chosen there is actual footage, and painful to absorb

    Studied it well but thank you for information and recap

    If you get to New Orleans also recommend the WWMuseaum and properties

    Yes we are in it but at what cost? If you recall the 80’s my parents dug down and barely made it out of that alive, but saved everything. There were not near the expenses as there are now, I feel it maybe worse.
    Hope the people around here stick true to their yard signs and vote for the B man, heck that’s 100 votes we will be taking away from the J man
    Good evening to al even old s 😀

  12. mike from iowa 2018-10-01 09:06

    Slightly OT- California wingnut Devin Numbnuts, he of congressional Russia probe shame, speaks of parent’s and brother’s farm and his ties to the land. Numbnut’s parents moved to a dairy farm in iowa in 2006 and Numbnut’s brother runs it now. It is only about 45 miles from mikey in Sibley, iowa.

  13. Ryan 2018-10-02 16:09

    Jerry said “Women are the glue that bond the ag community together.” What does that even mean? Seems like pandering.

    Debbo said “At least 3 of his 6 children would have liked to be farmers, but we could see the GOP writing in the soil and opted for other careers.” Half of your family based their career goals on fear of republicans? That seems like total baloney, just sayin.

  14. jerry 2018-10-02 16:19

    Ryan, you clearly are out of your league. Work with the Russian and the widdle Russian as they understand your misogyny.

  15. Ryan 2018-10-02 16:59

    jerry – out of my league for what? I’m surprised nobody has said this yet, but you rarely make any sense at all. Also, make no mistake – I love women and I want complete gender equality. No exceptions. How about you?

  16. mike from iowa 2018-10-02 17:36

    Ryan needs to have every little saying explained to him. My, my.

  17. Ryan 2018-10-02 18:03

    mike, you fumble through each interaction with me and lately I have been concerned about your overall cognition. Please, push that button on your necklace and call for help before it’s too late.

  18. Debbo 2018-10-02 20:38

    See, whenever there’s anything, anything at all about gender, and especially me too, Ryan gets hyperdefensive. Gender is his extra sensitive button and when it feels even the slightest pressure, he actively resumes his position as my stalker.

    It’s been several years since I had a stalker and the other one scared me. But this is just Ryan. He has gender issues and I have learned to expect him to jump whenever there’s anything in the general neighborhood of gender.

    I think Ryan one of the white male privilege fellows who feels he doesn’t have enough for it to actually count.

    Oh well. Life goes on with Stalker Ryan yipping and yapping at my heels. This way Ryan. 😀

  19. Ryan 2018-10-03 08:07

    Wrong again, debbo. Your ego is bigger than the empty space between your ears. Stalking has a real definition, and you are wrong for thinking you are cool or stalkable just because I have to keep pointing out how stupid you are on here. I point out how stupid porter is all the time, too. and jason. and jerry. and sometimes oldsarg, and sometimes jenny, and sometimes anne beal. and my best friend mike. You just think you’re special for some reason. let me be the eight thousandth person to tell you: you aren’t special.

  20. Debbo 2018-10-03 11:46

    Hey Mike, did you know you’re Stalker Ryan’s best friend? 😁 You lucky dog.

  21. Cory Allen Heidelberger Post author | 2018-10-03 21:28

    Wrong, Ryan: Debbo is special.

    More importantly for the purposes of this discussion, we still don’t have a Farm Bill, and Noem is on recess until November.

  22. Debbo 2018-10-03 21:38

    Thank you Cory. That’s very kind.

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