Issue Position: Agriculture

Issue Position

Issue Position: Agriculture

The Third District is home to some of the biggest American food producing corporations, putting food on the table of many Arkansans in every sense of the phrase. The Third District is also home to many family farmers and, as a former cattle rancher, I am sensitive to the problems they face. Perhaps the most important thing we can do for farmers and others employed in agriculturally related industry is to provide markets for them. I am proud to have supported American agriculture by helping to pass the Trade Promotion Authority bill and the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA). I am also proud of my work on the farm bill, more formally the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act. I am opposed to mandatory animal ID, and I have great concerns about confidentiality of records, processing, bearing expense of program and possible liability issues.

I believe that there is still much to accomplish, though. The farm bill will be up for renewal soon and I will work to ensure that it helps both the producers and consumers of food by ensuring a safe, stable, and plentiful supply of agricultural products. Eliminating the death tax would help keep farms in families. I also see no reason to make farmers scapegoats for regional water problems. I promise to continue to work hard to keep American agriculture the best in the world.

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