Senate Endgame for Ag
From the Ag Information Network, I’m Bob Larson. The Senate is rushing to pass stopgap funding and advance farm legislation this week, before their long summer recess.
$12 billion in new farm aid and a modernized farm bill hang in the balance.
More likely to pass, according to Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley, is a stopgap bill to keep the lights on in D.C. …
GRASSLEY … “A full shutdown and two partial shutdowns have occurred in just the past nine months. Unfortunately, it looks like we could be headed for a fourth before the end of the year.”
Top Democratic appropriator Patty Murray says the stopgap or continuing resolution the Senate advanced, 89-4, buys time …
MURRAY … “I am very grateful that we were able to craft a bipartisan CR to keep the government funded and to make sure we can avert a shutdown no one wants, while giving us the time to reach a bipartisan agreement on a top line in our funding bills.”
Grassley says shutdowns have proven harmful and ineffective …
GRASSLEY … “History has repeatedly shown that shutting down the government is not only bad policy, but it’s bad politics. It has also shown not to be a great bargaining tool.”
Grassley urged the Senate to back a bill to trigger automatic stopgaps if Congress fails to pass spending bills.
