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Bank Of America Investment The Senate rejected administration pleas to halt deficit spending and voted overwhelmingly today to give $6 billion in emergency drought relief aid to American farmers and ranchers.

by Paula Wolfson President Bush is urging the U.S. Senate to approve John Bolton for the key post of Ambassador to the United Nations. If you would like to receive late breaking news on issues covered by AXcess News then you need to subscribe.Print This Page April 21, 2005 (AXcess News) President Bush is urging the U.S. Senate to approve John Bolton for the key post of Ambassador to the United Nations. Mr. Bush says partisan bickering is to blame for a delay in the confirmation process.

Investment Opportunity The bipartisan vote of 79 to 16 reflects concern for farmers who are victims of a costly drought and political calculations over what may lead to victory in several tight elections in the Midwest.

Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle vowed yesterday to block all of President Bush's judicial nominees unless Bush promised to stop seating federal judges while the Senate was in recess. " appoint future judges, especially judges who have been rejected by the Senate, " said Daschle (D., S.D.).

Banc Of America Investment Leading the floor debate in favor of aid were Democratic senators who are facing serious challenges: Paul Wellstone of Minnesota, Tim Johnson of South Dakota, Jean Carnahan of Missouri and Tom Harkin of Iowa.

Our senators voted overwhelmingly "against" oil drilling in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge ("Senate rejects Bush's plans for Arctic oil drilling, " 13, April 19). It's pretty clear that this Senate vote was all based on appearances, no substance. politics that adversely affects each person.

Banking Investment Senators Wayne Allard of Colorado and Tim Hutchinson of Arkansas, both Republicans and equally worried about retaining their seats, broke with their party to demonstrate their concern for ranchers and farmers in their states.

The House of Representatives voted 269 to 156 to approve the Permanent Estate Tax Relief Act of 2006 on June 22, 2006, a compromise measure offered by Ways and Means Chairman William M. Thomas ( Calif.). The bipartisan vote sends the bill to the Senate, where its prospects for passage are good. The Senate previously rejected a full repeal of the tax, leading to the efforts for the compromise reform measure.

Investment Solution Strategic While there is no disagreement that thousands of rural families are facing hardships because of the drought, the White House has refused to support any new money for the farmers. Instead, the administration asked Congress to take disaster relief money out of the new $180 billion farm bill that was signed into law this spring.

In June 2003, the House approved the $162 billion "Death Tax Repeal Permanency Act of 2003" in a vote of 264 to 163. If passed in the Senate, the bill would cancel the sunset clause in President Bush's 2001 act. And the Estate Tax would be permanently repealed. The Senate has yet to act on this bill.

Investment Banking Services "The farm bill should break the bad fiscal habit of needing to pass emergency agriculture spending bills including drought, flood, or other supplemental payments that make it difficult for Congress to live within its budget," Ann M. Veneman, the secretary of agriculture, wrote in a letter to Senate leaders.

Bank Investment Senator Tom Daschle, the South Dakota Democrat who is majority leader and who wrote the relief measure, said the drought was costing farmers in his state $5 million a day. Mr. Daschle said the administration's request that Congress draw drought relief monies from the farm bill was wrong.

Alternative Investment "Suggesting that natural disaster aid come from the farm bill is like taking money from one pocket and putting it in the other," he said. "That's not disaster relief; it's a shell game."

Online Investment Services Other lawmakers questioned why drought victims should be treated differently than victims of hurricanes, earthquakes or floods.

Accompany Essential Investment "We've always done this when any part of the country has suffered from a natural disaster," Senator Johnson said. `'We need to deal with drought as past Republican and Democratic administrations have."

Investment Company The measure faces strong resistance in the House of Representatives and from the White House. Representative Dick Armey of Texas, the majority leader, said today that the drought aid was a political measure to help re-elect Senator Johnson.

Investment Management Solution Ari Fleischer, the White House press secretary, said today that "the president will continue to work with Congress to see what the most appropriate way is to bring this help to the people who need it."

Investment Management Services Mr. Fleischer noted that the "farm bill does have plenty of funding in it to handle many different issues."

Guide Investment Stock Still, drought relief is so politically popular that Senator Phil Gramm, the Texas Republican who is retiring, was one of the few senators to speak against the measure on the floor today. "Deficits don't come from heaven," Mr. Gramm said. "Today we are in the process of adding $6 billion to the deficit."

Investment Manual Solution Unlike the farm bill, which was strongly criticized during Congressional debates for giving the majority of subsidy money to the nation's biggest farmers, the disaster relief passed by the Senate today is to go to all farmers and ranchers who have suffered from the drought.

Investment Stock This has brought endorsement from all farm groups, regardless of their positions on the recent farm bill.

Essential Investment Solution Farmers who suffer at least 35 percent loss of their crops and ranchers who lose at least 35 percent of their pasture are to be eligible.

Citicorp Investment Services The drought, the result of five years of scant rainfall, has dried fields and forests alike, creating wildfires in national parks as well as poor crops in the nation's interior. For farmers, it also follows more than three years of record low prices for their crops because of overproduction.

Fool Guide Investment Motley "This drought couldn't have come at a worse time," said Keith Dittrich, president of the American Corn Growers Association. "Farmers have suffered through some of the worst economic conditions due to low market prices."

Fidelity Investment Services The harvest is so bad that the prices for commodity crops have risen, which in turn has led to an unexpected drop in the costs of the new farm bill.

Investment Management With the higher prices for basic commodities, the government will save $5 billion in lower payments to farmers under the new farm bill, according to a new estimate from the Congressional Budget Office.

Francisco Investment San That news prompted Senator Kent Conrad, Democrat of North Dakota, to argue that the drought aid would not raise the federal deficit.

Mellon Investment Services "Those farmers who are blessed with a good crop are getting higher prices and less government payments," Mr. Conrad said. "But for others who are suffering in the horrible drought farmer's wives coming into the food banks and ranchers trading their meat for canned goods and perishables that aid is desperately needed."

Finance Investment By Elizabeth Becker
New York Times - 9/11/2002

Topic: Agriculture

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