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Obama campaign reaches out to rural South Dakota
Clinton offers similar agriculture agenda
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FarkTwo former state agriculture leaders made a pitch to rural South Dakota on Monday for presidential hopeful Barack Obama, touting farm-policy initiatives aimed at strengthening disaster assistance, helping beginning farmers and boosting alternative fuel supplies.
The rural-initiative package by the senator from Illinois varies little on key issues from a similar farm agenda offered by his opponent, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York. Her campaign released a list Monday of 41 former South Dakota legislators - a number of them farmers - who were supporting her in the state’s Democratic primary June 3.
Obama’s campaign previously released a list of 25 current Democratic state lawmakers – a number of them farmers - who were endorsing him.
In a conference call Monday, Dallas Tonsager and Dennis Wiese, both former presidents of the South Dakota Farmers Union, said Obama was the best choice for South Dakota farmers and ranchers. Wiese said he was impressed that Obama based his rural agenda on personal meetings with farmers and ranchers, rather than Washington lobbyists.
Wiese and Tonsager agreed that Obama’s strong support for permanent disaster assistance was essential to farmers and ranchers who are often damaged by drought, flood, blizzards and hail.
“I think disaster is always an issue in South Dakota,” Tonsager said.
Grain and livestock prices have been at profitable levels in South Dakota in recent years. But Tonsager said farm markets are subject to dramatic swings, and farm programs should be designed to cushion farmers when the prices fall, he said.
“In the long term, cycles happen,” Tonsager said. “We all hope we’re in a new plateau in prices or some new opportunities, but I think we also have to be cognizant that all things go around.”
Like Clinton, Obama supports the development of a permanent disaster-assistance program rather than the ad-hoc programs that critiques say can come too little too late, if at all. Both candidates also support the implementation of mandatory country-of-origin labeling on meat products, more aggressive development of alternative energy supplies, including corn-based ethanol as well as ethanol developed from other natural materials.
Clinton and Obama agree that farm payments should be targeted at family farms rather than large farm corporations, although Wiese said even payments to large farms have benefited rural economies.
“He (Obama) would not believe that the funds that have been spent have been wasted,” Wiese said.
Obama would assist beginning farmers with direct tax credits to them and capital-gains-tax breaks to landowners who sell to new farmers. Obama also would use the land-grant universities as the base for a professional development program for beginning farmers.
Clinton would provide better access to capital and credit for beginning, minority and women farmers and offer loan forgiveness to those who complete higher education in agriculture or business management.
Both candidates say more should be done to develop wind resources and transmission lines. And they both want stronger conservation provisions in farm policy, with Obama specifically urging increased funding for the Conservation Reserve Program and related programs.
Dick Waddell, a retired farmer and former state senator from Isabel, is one of the 41 former lawmakers who signed on in supporting Clinton. Waddell said he was a strong supporter of former President Bill Clinton and backed the former first lady “all the way.”
Waddell said Hillary Clinton’s travels and experience as first lady gave her a great deal of insight into farm and ranch problems.
“I think she knows a lot about rural America,” he said.
Contact Kevin Woster at 394-8413 or kevin.woster@rapidcityjournal.com
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