Sen. Pat Roberts, the Republican from Kansas who has served as a leader in both the House and Senate Agriculture Committees over his four decade career in Congress, said goodbye to his Senate colleagues Thursday in a farewell floor speech. The outspoken senator who helped to write the past eight farm bills spoke about his background, how he went from …
Biden Wants Zero Emissions by 2025, or 2050
Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden expressed support for “complete zero emissions by 2025” by transitioning away from oil during the debate with President Donald Trump Thursday night. “Because the oil industry pollutes significantly,” said Biden. “It has to be replaced by renewable energy over time.” Biden mentioned solar and wind energy, but renewable fuels were not specifically mentioned by either …
Biden Attacks Trump on RFS Support
Democratic president candidate Joe Biden released a statement this week attacking President Donald Trump over his record on renewable fuels. “Instead of standing with those who till our land and sow our fields, we have a president who has sold out our farmers by undercutting the Renewable Fuel Standard with the granting of waivers to Big Oil,” said Biden in …
Buttigieg and Sanders Show Strong Biofuels Support
Initial Iowa Caucus results are showing Pete Buttigieg and Bernie Sanders in the lead, both of whom profess strong support for ethanol and biodiesel, according to Biofuels Vision 2020. In fact, all of the top candidates are friendly to biofuels, including Vice President Joe Biden, Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota and Sen. Elizabeth Warren. Biofuels Vision 2020 spent months asking …
Presidential Hopeful Says Waivers are “Killing” Ethanol
Ethanol and small refinery waivers came up in the middle of a trade question during the Democratic presidential candidate debate Wednesday on MSNBC. South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg was asked whether he would continue the “farm subsidies” that President Trump has authorized to help farmers struggling from the impact of the trade war with China. “We shouldn’t have to …
Latest Agri-Pulse Poll Shows Strong Support for Trump
It’s probably safe to say that no president in recent history has talked about agriculture as much as President Donald J. Trump, who has managed to mention farmers in nearly every campaign stop he has made in the past week. That “I love farmers” strategy continues to pay off, despite trade policy strategies that have impacted agricultural exports. A new …
Northey Confirmed But No White House Deal on RFS
Bill Northey is at last free to take the job at USDA that he was nominated for almost six months ago after Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) lifted his hold on the nomination and allowed the confirmation Tuesday. The Senate confirmed Northey on a voice vote to become USDA’s undersecretary for farm production and conservation as Sens. Cruz, Pat Toomey (R-PA), …
Ethanol Politics Hold Up Northey Nomination
Refinery state senators are hitting back against the Trump administration for bowing to pressure from ethanol supporters last week and abandoning proposed changes in the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) this week put a hold on the nomination of Iowa’s Bill Northey for USDA Under Secretary of Farm Production and Conservation, who was approved by the Senate …
Trump Commits to Agriculture in Iowa
President Donald Trump stood among various models of John Deere and Case IH farm equipment as he pledged to boost agriculture exports, loosen federal regulations on the agriculture industry, and support ethanol and biofuels yesterday while speaking to a crowd of about 250 at Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. “Today we are celebrating the dignity of work and …
Terry Brandstad Addresses Ag Outlook Forum
The distinguished speaker at this year’s USDA Agricultural Outlook Forum was former Iowa Governor Terry Branstad, who was recently nominated as ambassador to China. Branstad took time during his speech to praise incoming Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue and share his thoughts on the future of agriculture and economic development in rural America. “Simply put, American agriculture is tied to …