Farm bill "within reach"

It doesn't sound as if Sen. Tom Harkin is having a lot of fun, but he said in this morning's teleconference that he believes a farm bill is within reach as House and Senate negotiators coalesce around the $10 billion figure over baseline in a 10 year bill, not including "internal scrubbing" and "timing shifts" that account for $9 billion more. "There may be some programs that get a little bit less(than the Senate bill)." Here is the audio clip of his opening statement. He said the House and Senate will decide on how much will be assigned to each title of the farm bill, perhaps by later today. There is still no hard news on what offsets and revenue provisions are in play, and he suggested the White House still needs to be more flexible. Harkin said there will be "timing shifts" - read budget gimmicks by the White House - to help make the budget math work. Harkin also said direct payments may be in play for possible cuts. Responding to a question about a Crop Revenue Program, Harkin said he expects the program to be preserved in the final farm bill. Harkin also downplayed the notion that the Senate Finance Committee should have control over the funding it provides to the farm bill. Harkin notes the House still has not appointed conferees for the farm bill, so no public meetings are scheduled yet.