Farm Bill Delays Continue
From the Ag Information Network, I’m Bob Larson. The Thanksgiving turkey may be gone, but the political hurdles stalling spending bills and a new farm bill on Capitol Hill, remain.
The House and Senate reconvened last week, but saw little new work on agency spending.
West Virginia Senator Shelley Moore Capito says Majority Leader Chuck Schumer was bringing up NO appropriations last week …
CAPITO … “And he’s squandering good time, resources, and I think, the ability of us to really get our work done, and set us on a path of frugal responsibility, to where we can then become conference, and conference with the House.”
But Washington Senator Patty Murray says the problem is with the House and its GOP leaders who want bigger spending cuts than agreed to earlier …
MURRAY … “House Republicans just need to remember, the top lines they passed into law, under the Fiscal Responsibility Act—a bill that Speaker Johnson actually voted for, along with many other Republicans.”
But Johnson’s not budging …
JOHNSON … “Part of the negotiations on the remaining appropriations bills, and everything that’s on our plate, is viewed by us through that lens, that we have to restore this idea of fiscal sanity.”
A fight that will linger into next year with two new shutdown deadlines that could again hamper movement on a new farm bill the Ag committees won’t bring up without a clear path to passage.
