Partisanship Seen During Farm Bill Hearing

The House and Senate agriculture committees have a reputation for bipartisanship. However, a more partisan tone was seen during the introduction of the farm bill in the House. Georgia Republican Congressman Austin Scott delivered an example of the rhetoric from the majority. “Falsehoods have been perpetuated by activists on the outside and some from the inside, even some from this committee, to try and distract from the fact that they never intended to support a piece of legislation that was a good and robust safety net for American agricultural producers,” said Scott. On the other side of the aisle, Massachusetts Congressman Jim McGovern’s comments were typical for the Democratic members of the committee. “Do you know who this bill is a win for?” questioned McGovern. “It’s a win for CEOs and C-Suites that have never worked in a field a day in their life; it’s a win for people with luxury beachfront properties and fancy highrise apartments who make their money screwing over our family farmers.”