|
|
|
Schafer: Safe and steady....for a yearBy Ken Root The new U.S. Secretary of Agriculture is Ed Schafer, former governor of North Dakota. He should be the last head of USDA under the Bush administration and he comes at a time that there is need for quiet, steady progress to finish a farm bill and keep everyone in their seats until this administration departs from Washington, D.C. Schafer fits the stoic North Dakota stereotype and is a determined leader with great loyalty. He is polite, competent and controls situations well, so far, as he meets each challenge of the huge department that ranges from the forest service to meat inspection. I have been told that you don't want to push a North Dakotan too far, because they are from the coldest, windiest state and don't have a lot to lose. Schafer has already dealt with a huge beef recall resulting from mistreatment of animals by a California packing plant and amplified by a publicity-seeking U. S. Humane Society. He made the recall almost immediately but has begun chipping away at the credibility of USHS while trying to determine if there is a larger problem. That's a pretty good firefighting technique that could serve him well. He has held the line on allowing early out of the Conservation Reserve and will hand that decision on to his successor and the vagaries of nature. On the long suffering farm legislation, Ed Schafer has no choice but to go with the Bush administration's objective of reducing costs. His only part of building this house is to stand out in front and try to sell it. Deputy Secretary Chuck Connor remains the lead negotiator and will soon carry the distinction of putting food and agriculture bills through from both sides, as he served under Indiana Senator Dick Lugar as the point man for the Senate Agriculture Committee, before going to the USDA. What's next or who's next? The presidential campaigns have almost come down to the Democratic and Republican nominees. Who will head their USDA and what policies will they propose? The effervescent and ever present Dr. Barry Flinchbaugh, ag economist from Kansas State University, says former Congressman Charlie Stenholm will be the Secretary of Agriculture if Hillary Clinton is elected. Stenholm would make a lot of people in agriculture more confident of USDA's mission, if he were named as Secretary. He carries almost the same credentials as Dan Glickman, who served under Bill Clinton after the debacle with Mike (Tyson) Espy. Both Dan and Charlie were long in tenure on the House Agriculture Committee before being defeated in their home states. Stenholm's political views are moderate but he may carry some anger back to Washington after Republicans moved his district to the point that the "Blue Dog Democrat" could be beaten by a one-legged Republican bus boy. (No offense intended to the person who holds that position in the House or a restaurant.) Stenholm has shown the compassion to get good things going so it's doubtful he'd spend his time getting even. Under Obama, who knows who will occupy the job of Ag Secretary? He's from Illinois and we've had some pretty good secretaries out of that state. He desires to make great change in America and USDA controls the food stamp program. Add those together and he could give the agency more prominence but with a different focus. We can only hope that he studied history and politics enough to know that a West Coast secretary carries little weight in the Midwest or South. Obama has made friends within Congress who might want to serve in his administration. Could he go across the aisle and pick a Republican? If he does, Iowa Senator Charles Grassley has just one request: "That the new Secretary would have dirt under (his) fingernails." John McCain has recently made friends with a lot of people who disliked him in years past, when he wasn't the heir apparent to the Republican nomination. McCain did the least campaigning in Iowa so he's not beholden to anyone in the middle of the country. He softened his stance against biofuels but still wishes to eliminate virtually all subsidies of the type that have vaulted ethanol into its position of prominence. He has stated that something has to be done to counter global warming and that could favor agriculture by providing incentives to capture carbon from the atmosphere and put it back in the ground. McCain could go with a Secretary of Agriculture from agribusiness, but these former governors (Johanns and Schafer) show that they can run hard and carry the administration's message very well. And don't count out Chuck Conner, as he has shown that he can work out front as well as he can in the background. There are some very good people in agriculture who could do a great job leading the USDA. Charlie Kruse, Missouri Farm Bureau president, would strike a balance of north and south for a Republican administration. Kenny Hulshof, a Republican Missouri Congressman, who is leaving the House to run for governor, might be persuaded to take a detour. Rick Perry, Texas Governor and former Texas Secretary of Agriculture, could be McCain's man. And perhaps Dr. Barry Flinchbaugh, who studied under Earl Butz and has been a major influence on farm legislation since the 1970s, could now be placed in an office within the USDA with the door locked--from the outside! Editor's note: This is Ken Root's 34th year as an agricultural reporter. He grew up on a small farm in central Oklahoma and started his career as a vocational agriculture teacher. He worked in Oklahoma, Kansas and Missouri as a broadcaster and was the original host of AgriTalk. He has also been the executive director of the National AgriChemical Retailers Association in Washington, D.C. and the National Association of Farm Broadcasters in Kansas City. Ken is now the lead farm broadcaster at WHO and WMT Radio based in Des Moines, Iowa. He has been a columnist for HPJ and Midwest Ag Journal for seven years. 3/10/08 Date: 3/6/08 Advertisement
Copyright/Privacy
Copyright 1995-2009. High Plains Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved. Any republishing of these pages, including electronic reproduction of the editorial archives or classified advertising, is strictly prohibited. If you have questions or comments you can reach us at High Plains Journal 1500 E. Wyatt Earp Blvd., P.O. Box 760, Dodge City, KS 67801 or call 1-800-452-7171. Email: webmaster@hpj.com |
Market Snapshot Inside Futures |
