11/10/06 Democrats take control

The elections have vaulted the Democratic Party into control of both houses of Congress. In the House - that means Minnesota Congressman Collin Peterson will be heading up the House Ag Committee starting in January. Peterson wants to allay fears that the committee will run much differently under his leadership. PETERSON: Peterson sat in on many of the House Ag Committee farm bill field hearings held around the country this year. He says what he heard gave him the impression the majority of farmers want Congress to leave the current farm bill alone for the most part - and only provide some tweaking. That notion puts him at odds with the administration and current leadership that would rather overhaul much of the 2002 bill. Peterson says the new Congress will work to avoid what he calls "governing from the top down". PETERSON: Peterson wants to pursue approval of agricultural disaster relief as soon as possible and tie it in with improved safety net provisions for farmers. He is a strong proponent of ethanol and biofuels - and he says many people are surprised to learn that - in spite of her liberal leanings - Nancy Pelosi is one of the biggest supporters of biofuels on Capitol Hill. So - Peterson says to look for aggressive action to promote and expand the biofuels industry in the U.S. PETERSON: Peterson says the makeup of his party on Capitol Hill will definitely be shifting back toward the center as a result of the election...tape PETERSON: As far as other issues - Peterson is not in favor of extending fast track trade promotion authority for the President - he does want to enforce the COOL legislation as it was approved in the 2002 farm bill - he wants to come up with a solution for the immigrant worker problem in the U.S. - possibly utilizing a new standardized tamper-proof Social Security card system - and he thinks his party will strive to enforce the laws that are currently on the books in regard to corporate mega-mergers and market manipulation in the ag industry. That's today's Line On Agriculture. I'm Greg Martin on the Northwest Ag Information Network.