Agriculture dead last as campaign issue

Once the Iowa caucuses are over, agriculture drops out of sight as a topic of discussion in presidential politics. That's why federal ag policy is the mess that it is. John Q. Public never hears enough intelligent discussion about it to even become mildly interested in agriculture, much less well informed.

What minor attention agriculture receives, it is to pander to one ag segment or another to garner votes, not to make sound policy that makes economic sense. The worst offender is ethanol manufactured from corn, a completely uneconomic solution to America's energy woes (see blogs below). Close in line behind it, at the federal trough, are subsidies for cotton, tobacco and peanuts.

Even worse, food stamps for poor and indigent people are part of the agriculture budget. Many naive people think food stamps are America's heart of compassion, to keep children from going hungry. The truth is, the big force behind constantly higher spending for food stamps are the major food manufacturers and grocery chains, who make big money out of food stamps.

The federal government subsidizes big grocery chains like Kroger, SuperValu and Walmart to a lush degree with the heavy food stamp spending that comes their way. These chains pay fancy money to Washington lobbyists to keep the federal food stamp budget continually going up.

All this is lumped together as "agriculture policy," when in reality it is little more than payoffs to politically well-connected industries, who feed off the federal government through indirect subsidies. It is well known that you carry southern states in a presidential election with tobacco, peanut and cotton subsidies. In a close election, the rural vote makes all the difference. Corn, soybean and other grain subsidies are key in midwestern states in a close election.

This is what passes for "farm policy." Using the taxpayer's money to buy agriculture votes is hardly good economics, and it raises the price of U.S. farm commodities to the point that it hinders badly needed foreign trade. U.S. farmers produce far more food than Americans could ever eat, so selling it overseas is almost mandatory.

If you even have the chance (fat chance of that every happening), ask Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama or John McCain about that. They wouldn't dare tell you the truth you've just read here.