Musgrave Celebrates Farm Bill Passage

U.S. Rep. Marilyn Musgrave said she would “lead the fight” to override a potential presidential veto of the federal farm bill, which the House of Representatives passed by a wide margin Wednesday.

“I just think that this is a great economic development tool for all of rural America,” she said in a conference call with reporters Wednesday. “In the 4th Congressional District, we are poised to be leaders in the nation in renewable energy, and while we’ve had record prices recently, we just came out of a horrific drought. This is the safety net for rural America that we talk about. I’m glad that we have this done.”

The 318-106 vote for the five-year bill came despite President Bush’s promised veto. The healthy victory margin all but ensures it could be overridden, however.

The record prices Musgrave discussed have been difficult for many Americans who are watching the prices of many dairy and grain products hit near-record highs.

But the bill may offer some aid. About two-thirds of the bill would pay for nutrition programs such as food stamps and emergency food aid for the needy. An additional $40 billion is for farm subsidies while almost $30 billion would go to farmers to fallow their land, to renewable energy and to other environmental programs, according to the AP.

Musgrave said the bill contains $1.2 billion in additional money for food banks as well as new eligibility guidelines for food stamps.

“There will be many more people will be eligible for food stamps, and I think that’s a very positive thing,” she said. “I’m proud of the work we did for food banks.”

Though the bill had broad support from both parties, some conservative Republicans said it didn’t go far enough to limit payments to rich farmers—the same criticism leveled by President Bush. The bill stops direct payment subsidies to farmers who make more than $750,000 per year but some lawmakers and Bush wanted that number lowered to $500,000.

Musgrave said the massive bill represented a drop in the federal budget, however.

“For people to get on their high horse now after they’ve been spending and spending is amazing to me,” she said. “We have significant reform in this bill ... so I can stand up as a fiscal conservative and be proud of this bill and be proud of the direction we moved in.”

The Senate was expected to take up the measure later Wednesday; U.S. Sen. Ken Salazar, D-Colo., has said he believes the Senate also has a veto-proof majority.