It's a wrap

TK: The final post of the day comes courtesy of House Republicans. House Ag Committee Chairman Peterson said today in his teleconference that he feels he will work with Bob Goodlatte with no problem going forward. Clearly, the tax provision was inserted outside the control of the committee to fund nutrition priorities. Once this is in the rearview mirrow, the bipartisan spirit should persist - one hopes.
From the Republicans:


House Republicans Say "Yes" to Farm Bill; "No" to Tax Increase

WASHINGTON - Today, House Republicans opposed the Democrat leadership's move to attach tax increases to the traditionally popular farm bill. In a largely partisan vote, Democrats passed the farm legislation by a vote of 231 to 191.

Leader of the agriculture committee Republicans, Ranking Member Bob Goodlatte said, "Speaker Pelosi and the Democrats threw away an opportunity to produce a farm bill with broad bipartisan support in pursuit of their obsession to tax and spend. It is a real shame that the traditional bipartisan spirit of farm policymaking has been damaged like this."

On Tuesday, Republicans of the House Agriculture Committee stood arm-in-arm with Democrat committee members, declaring their support for the new 5-year farm bill that they were about to take to the full House for passage. Within 24 hours, that unity had been shattered by overnight maneuvering by the Democrat leadership to inject major tax increases into the farm legislation, without consideration of either the Agriculture Committee or the tax-writing Ways and Means Committee.

After being rebuffed repeatedly in the period leading up to House consideration, Republicans sought the ability to ask for a separate vote on the tax issue. Democrats rejected this request and brought the bill to the House under rules that prevented amendments on the tax increase. Finally, Ranking Member Goodlatte offered a motion to send the farm bill back to committee and bring it forward as the bipartisan legislation the committee had passed out. Democrats rejected the motion on a party-line vote.

"Everyone in rural America should be saddened and outraged by what happened here today. The Agriculture Committee produced a farm bill that could have passed with a hundred more votes, a clearly veto-proof bill. Instead, the farm bill is limping out of the House with one of the smallest majorities that anyone can remember, encumbered by a tax increase that wasn't necessary. It didn't have to be this way," Ranking Member Goodlatte said.