[Senate Hearing 106-814]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
S. Hrg. 106-814
NOMINATION OF CHRISTOPHER A. MCLEAN AND MICHAEL V. DUNN
=======================================================================
HEARING
before the
COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE,
NUTRITION, AND FORESTRY
UNITED STATES SENATE
ONE HUNDRED SIXTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION
ON
NOMINATION OF CHRISTOPHER A. MCLEAN AND MICHAEL V. DUNN
__________
APRIL 11, 27, 2000
__________
Printed for the use of the
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry
U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
67-861 CC WASHINGTON : 2000
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
For sale by the U.S. Government Printing Office
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COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE, NUTRITION, AND FORESTRY
RICHARD G. LUGAR, Indiana, Chairman
JESSE HELMS, North Carolina TOM HARKIN, Iowa
THAD COCHRAN, Mississippi PATRICK J. LEAHY, Vermont
MITCH McCONNELL, Kentucky KENT CONRAD, North Dakota
PAUL COVERDELL, Georgia THOMAS A. DASCHLE, South Dakota
PAT ROBERTS, Kansas MAX BAUCUS, Montana
PETER G. FITZGERALD, Illinois J. ROBERT KERREY, Nebraska
CHARLES E. GRASSLEY, Iowa TIM JOHNSON, South Dakota
LARRY E. CRAIG, Idaho BLANCHE L. LINCOLN, Arkansas
RICK SANTORUM, Pennsylvania
Keith Luse, Staff Director
David L. Johnson, Chief Counsel
Robert E. Sturm, Chief Clerk
Mark Halverson, Staff Director for the Minority
(ii)
C O N T E N T S
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Page
Hearing:
Tuesday, April 11, 2000, Nomination of Christopher A. McLean, to
serve as Administrator of the USDA's Rural Utilities Service... 1
Thursday, April 27, 2000, Nomination of Michael Vincent Dunn, to
be member, Farm Credit Administration.......................... 35
Appendix:
Tuesday, April 11, 2000.......................................... 13
Document(s) submitted for the record:
Tuesday, April 11, 2000.......................................... 19
Document(s) submitted for the record:
Thursday, April 27, 2000......................................... 45
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Tuesday, April 11, 2000
STATEMENTS PRESENTED BY SENATORS
Lugar, Hon. Richard, G., a U.S. Senator from Indiana, Chairman,
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.............. 1
Harkin, Hon. Tom, a U.S. Senator from Iowa, Ranking Member,
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.............. 6
Conrad, Hon. Kent, a U.S. Senator from North Dakota.............. 3
Kerrey, Hon. J. Robert, a U.S. Senator from Nebraska............. 2
----------
WITNESSES
Hagel, Hon. Chuck, a U.S. Senator from Nebraska.................. 2
McLean, Christopher A., Acting Administrator, The Rural Utilities
Service, USDA.................................................. 4
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APPENDIX
Prepared Statements
Baucus, Hon. Max............................................. 17
McLean, Christopher A........................................ 14
Document(s) submitted for the record:
Biographical information of, Christopher A. McLean........... 20
Letter to Hon. Richard G. Lugar, submitted by Stephen D.
Potts, Director, Office of Government Ethics............... 28
Letter to Hon. Richard G. Jugar, submitted by Stuart
Polikoff, Director, Government Relations................... 34
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Thursday, April 27, 2000
STATEMENTS PRESENTED BY SENATORS
Lugar, Hon. Richard G., a U.S. Senator from Indiana, Chairman,
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.............. 35
Roberts, Hon. Pat, a U.S. Senator from Kansas.................... 42
Grassley, Hon. Charles E., a U.S. Senator from Iowa.............. 36
Harkin, Hon. Tom, a U.S. Senator from Iowa, Ranking Member,
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.............. 43
Leahy, Hon. Patrick J., a U.S. Senator from Vermont.............. 40
Conrad, Hon. Kent, a U.S. Senator from North Dakota.............. 41
Baucus, Hon. Max, a U.S. Senator from Montana.................... 42
----------
WITNESSES
Dunn, Michael V., to be member, Farm Credit Administration....... 36
----------
APPENDIX
Document(s) submitted for the record:
Biographical information, of Michael V. Dunn................. 46
Letter to Hon. Richard G. Lugar, submitted by Stephen D.
Potts, Director, Office of Government Ethics............... 52
NOMINATION OF CHRISTOPHER A. MCLEAN, TO SERVE AS ADMINISTRATOR OF THE
USDA'S RURAL UTILITIES SERVICE
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TUESDAY, APRIL 11, 2000
U.S. Senate,
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry,
Washington, DC.
The Committee met, pursuant to notice, at 9:36 a.m., in
room SR-328A, Russell Senate Office Building, Hon. Richard G.
Lugar, (Chairman of the Committee), presiding.
Present or Submitting a Statement: Senators Lugar,
Fitzgerald, Grassley, Harkin, Conrad, Daschle, and Baucus.
OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. RICHARD G. LUGAR, A U.S. SENATOR FROM
INDIANA, CHAIRMAN, COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE, NUTRITION, AND
FORESTRY
The Chairman. This hearing of the Senate Agriculture
Committee is called to order.
Today, the Committee is holding a hearing on two matters.
First is the confirmation of Christopher A. McLean to serve as
Administrator of the USDA's Rural Utilities Service. Our second
topic is the MTBE Crisis and the Future of Renewable Fuels.
We will turn first to the confirmation of Mr. McLean. He is
a native of Nebraska and has served as the Acting Administrator
of the Rural Utilities Service since November of 1999. Before
that, he served as Deputy Administrator of this agency. He is
no stranger to the Senate, having worked for both Senator Bob
Kerrey and former Senator Jim Exon.
We are privileged today to have Senator Kerrey, who is a
member of our committee, and Senator Hagel, the delegation of
Senators from Nebraska, to offer words of introduction for Mr.
McLean.
As the Agency that provides infrastructure financing for
electric, telecommunications, and water and waste disposal
projects in rural America, the Rural Utilities Service has an
important mission that is vital to the health and quality of
life of people on farms in our country. As Administrator of the
Rural Utilities Service, Mr. McLean would oversee the
management of a huge loan portfolio, including investments in
approximately 7,000 small-community rural and wastewater
systems, and 2,000 electric and telecommunications systems
servicing rural America.
I welcome you to the Committee, Mr. McLean, and look
forward to hearing your testimony.
First of all, I would like to call upon my colleagues for
their comments of introduction.
Senator Kerrey.
STATEMENT OF HON. J. ROBERT KERREY, A U.S. SENATOR FROM
NEBRASKA
Senator Kerrey. Well, Mr. Chairman, you have given most of
the relevant details about Chris McLean. He is from Nebraska.
[Laughter.]
But I would like to use this as an opportunity, if I could,
Mr. Chairman, for you and for colleagues and for the record. I
came into politics in 1982, straight from business and naive
about many things concerning government. Key amongst them was
the idea that all the good human beings were in the private
sector, and that it was not likely in the public sector you
would find very many people that were superior to people in the
private sector or that would be willing to work as hard, etc.,
etc..
That myth was shattered very early on in my term as
governor. It doesn't mean that we don't have to work to try to
reform government, but I am very impressed with the quality of
people and their willingness to sacrifice and work for the
common good, and Chris McLean is in that category.
He comes to jobs willing to spend the time necessary to
understand the details. He comes with a great respect for the
power of the law to do good and bad. He has, I think, the right
balance of respect for what the marketplace can do and what our
laws can do to assist where the market doesn't get the job
done, and I think will make an excellent Administrator of the
RUS. I appreciate very much not only his nomination, but I
appreciate very much his willingness to serve.
The Chairman. Well, thank you very much, Senator Kerrey,
for that introduction.
Senator Hagel
STATEMENT OF HON. CHUCK HAGEL, A U.S. SENATOR FROM NEBRASKA
Senator Hagel. Mr. Chairman, thank you. I, too, am pleased
to have an opportunity to say a couple of words about our
friend, Mr. McLean.
As Senator Kerrey noted, Mr. McLean starts with an unfair
advantage in life, having his early grounding and schooling in
Nebraska. So we take note of that early on. Picking up on what
Bob said about good people, quality people, committed people,
this is a man who actually understands what his job is. This is
an individual who has lived these issues. This is a man who has
a vast and deep and broad experience foundation to draw from.
And we never, as you know, Mr. Chairman, have enough of the
kind of individuals that we are talking about today with Mr.
McLean.
The only flaw I can find is that he has not had the high
honor of working for a Republican Senator, but we shall
overlook that and I think we can work with that, Mr. Chairman.
I think it is beyond fixing at this point.
Senator Kerrey. About as close as you can get. He worked
for Exon and me.
[Laughter.]
Senator Hagel. Some would take issue with that, however.
[Laughter.]
But nonetheless, before I get him in trouble and Kerrey and
I start a dialogue here that probably would not be in the best
interests of Mr. McLean, I am very enthusiastic about this
nomination, Mr. Chairman, and I think he will do a terrific
job, and we look forward to working with Mr. McLean.
Thank you for holding the hearing.
The Chairman. Well, we thank both of the Senators from
Nebraska for giving these words of encouragement about the
nominee. We appreciate the spirit of support that both of you
have given to the work of this committee, in addition to your
words today for Mr. McLean.
Let me just say prior to calling upon you for your
testimony and your opening statement that I would just for the
record say that the FBI background checks were presented to me
and that I have reviewed all of that carefully. That is one of
the situations we proceed through. As you know, the chairman
and the ranking member are supposed to take that responsibility
carefully on behalf of the other members and bring to their
attention items that should be brought to their attention.
Now, during the course of your review with staff and the
financial disclosures, you have pledged to divest yourself of
certain securities. I simply make that point, and I would say
even beyond that which the law requires in terms of the
denominations that are involved so that there would be no
potential for a conflict of interest.
So as far as I can tell, you start this testimony with a
clean slate, but I would just say for the benefit of those
watching the hearing, we take very seriously the background
checks, the financial disclosures, and thoughtfulness with
regard to potential conflicts of interest because the portfolio
that you would manage is very sizable. And we appreciated your
testimony at the time of the rural satellite business, a
situation which you may come into considerable leadership and
authority.
Now, at this point, before you begin your testimony, I ask
you to raise your right hand and to repeat after me.
Do you swear that the testimony you are about to present is
the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help
you God?
Mr. McLean. I do.
The Chairman. I thank you. Please proceed with your
testimony.
Senator Conrad. Mr. Chairman?
The Chairman. Yes?
Senator Conrad. Might I say a word just before he begins?
The Chairman. Of course.
STATEMENT OF HON. KENT CONRAD, A U.S. SENATOR FROM NORTH DAKOTA
Senator Conrad. I ask for that opportunity, Mr. Chairman,
because Chris has been nominated to succeed Wally Beyer, and
the really, I think, important fact here today is that, of
course, Wally Beyer is a North Dakotan. Wally Beyer is somebody
for whom I have enormously high regard. He has served as the
Administrator throughout the time of this administration and
done a superb job dealing with the challenges of that agency.
He tells me that he believes Chris is fully prepared to
assume the mantle of responsibility of that agency, and none of
that surprises any of us who worked with Chris while he served
Bob Kerrey and served Jim Exon, really a first-rate person. And
I just wanted to make mention of what Wally Beyer said to me in
a phone call yesterday.
The Chairman. Thank you very much for that thoughtful
comment.
Mr. McLean.
TESTIMONY OF CHRISTOPHER A. MCLEAN, TO BE ADMINISTRATOR, RURAL
UTILITIES SERVICE, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Mr. McLean. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman and members
of the Committee, for scheduling today's hearing. And thank
you, Senator Kerrey, Senator Conrad, and Senator Hagel, for
your very kind words, your support, and your friendship.
I also appreciate the presence of my friends and colleagues
who are here today, and I also want to pay special thanks to my
parents back home in Omaha. And most importantly, I would like
to thank my wife, Helen, who has been a most understanding and
supportive wife, partner, and my best friend.
As a former Senate staffer, it is a profound honor to
appear before the Committee as the President's nominee to be
the Administrator of the Rural Utilities Service. I am deeply
grateful to have had the honor and privilege of serving as
counsel to two great Senators, Jim Exon and Bob Kerrey. From
them, I learned what it is to be a public servant.
Now, maybe this will make Senator Hagel feel a little
better, but as a Nebraskan it is a special honor and privilege
to be nominated to lead the Rural Utilities Service because
many of you know that Republican Nebraska Senator George Norris
introduced the Rural Electrification Act in 1936. So to this
day, I continue to work for a Nebraska Senator.
I am also humbled to be asked to follow in the footsteps of
Wally Beyer. As the last Administrator of the Rural
Electrification Administration and the first Administrator of
the Rural Utilities Service, Wally is the alpha and the omega
of the rural electric cooperative movement. Wally taught me
very well; I learned a great deal from him. He led the Agency
into the 21st century, and I am very honored to be asked to
carry the torch that he re-lit, forward.
Mr. Chairman, I am very pleased to report that the Rural
Utilities Service and its authorizing legislation is sound.
With the oversight of this committee, the Agency is working to
improve the quality of life for millions of our fellow
citizens, and setting an example of successful economic
development. The agency is blessed with a dedicated corps of
professionals. Everyday, they make me very proud to serve among
their ranks.
The programs of the Rural Utilities Service are pistons in
a great engine of economic growth. As the Nation enters a new
century, the need for rural infrastructure support is very
clear. Over 75-percent of the Nation's land mass is rural and
25-percent of the Nation's population lives in rural areas.
America cannot be strong without sound infrastructure in the
vast rural areas of this great Nation.
Rural America faces new challenges. Low commodity prices,
consolidation, vast areas of out-migration, all highlight the
need to further extend the benefits of the new economy. This is
a time of great change in every sector of the utilities
industry as well. Market and regulatory shifts in the
telecommunications and energy sectors altered decades-long
principles of utility economics. And in water, the health and
safety of rural families and the purity of the rural
environment are critical to the quality of life.
But this is also a time of unprecedented opportunity.
Information age technologies offer the opportunity to suspend
the disadvantages of distance, density, and geography.
Renewable resources of energy provide new ways to generate
income and wealth in rural communities, and the talents,
imagination and aspirations of rural youth provide the greatest
reason for optimism. And I am very optimistic that America is
on the verge of a rural renaissance.
This is a very unique moment in history. Reliable,
affordable power, modern telecommunications, safe and clean
water, the use of telecommunications technologies to enhance
education and health care are the building blocks of success in
the new economy.
The RUS does more than provide a source of affordable
capital; it ensures a level of quality and an ethic of
engineering which maximizes the value of every dollar invested.
RUS programs also leverage and attract private capital to
utilities projects in rural areas.
While the RUS is proud of its record of accomplishment, it
has a vision for the future. RUS is prepared to manage new
initiatives to strengthen rural America, to close and prevent
the digital divide, to put the electricity in electronic
commerce, and to enhance the safety and quality of rural water.
Mr. Chairman, should the Congress enact new loan guarantee
legislation on the local-into-local television issue, RUS will
be ready to meet that challenge.
The priorities I have pursued as Acting Administrator and
would pursue as Administrator would be the continuous reform,
reinvention, and responsiveness of the Agency; the embracement
of new technologies in all our programs, including renewable
and distributed generation and broadband services in
telecommunications; and modern water filtration and treatment.
We need to focus our attention on those living just beyond
the reach of our programs. Places like the Mississippi Delta,
Native American communities, and the colonials along the border
of the United States and Mexico need special attention, as does
that family who lives at the farthest corner of the county.
Finally, the RUS partnership with the private sector and other
agencies must be maximized to improve the benefit of every tax
dollar.
In conclusion, Mr. Chairman, I thank the Committee for its
attention, and I look forward to working very closely with this
committee. I appreciate the support that the Senators have
given me and the unwavering support that this committee has had
for the Rural Utilities Service and for keeping alive the
spirit and the vision of George Norris.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
[The prepared statement of Mr. McLean can be found in the
appendix on page 14.]
The Chairman. Thank you, Mr. McLean.
I would like to call now on the distinguished ranking
member of the Committee, Senator Harkin, for any opening
comments that he might have for our hearings this morning.
STATEMENT OF HON. TOM HARKIN, A U.S. SENATOR FROM IOWA, RANKING
MEMBER, COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE, NUTRITION, AND FORESTRY
Senator Harkin. Well, thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. I
want to welcome Chris McLean here. He has an excellent
reputation in the Senate, serving both Senator Exon and Senator
Kerrey with distinction. He has spent years dealing with issues
of importance to rural America. I know firsthand that he cares
about rural America and he knows what is going on. He knows how
Congress works, and I believe that his relatively brief tenure
at USDA has demonstrated a real skill at working with that
bureaucracy and working with the Hill.
I just want to point out that the Rural Utilities Service
is of great importance, as Chris McLean has said, providing
crucial assistance for rural water and sewer systems, the RECs,
as well the rural telephone companies and co-ops. Without the
assistance of the Rural Utilities Service, our ability to
maintain businesses and a decent quality of life would be a lot
harder in rural areas.
As Mr. McLean just said, our population continues to
decline in many rural areas, and so the cost of providing those
basic services gets relatively higher all the time. But there
are new opportunities through new technology and a growing
understanding of the quality of life in rural American that can
lead to that renaissance that he is talking about, and I can't
think of a better person to head that than Chris McLean. I hope
we can have unanimous support for him and get his nomination
secured post haste.
Mr. Chairman, I would just say that Senator Baucus extends
his apologies for not being here. He supports Mr. McLean's
nomination, and I would like to submit his statement for the
record.
The Chairman. It will be included in full.
[The prepared statement of Senator Baucus can be found in
the appendix on page 17.]
The Chairman. Let me mention likewise that the colleague of
Senator Harkin, Senator Grassley, on our committee, has had to
leave in the last few minutes and he wants to give his best
wishes, as will, I know, Senator Harkin in due course, to the
Governor of Iowa, whom we have present for a hearing
immediately following this one. Senator Grassley must Chair
Committee on Aging hearings today on the funeral industry. So
he would prefer to be here, but he will be doing his duty.
Let me begin the questioning with the mandatory question
that we always ask.
Mr. McLean, do you agree that, if confirmed, you will
appear before any duly constituted committee of the Congress,
if asked?
Mr. McLean. Yes, Sir.
The Chairman. Thank you very much for that assurance.
In many of the programs that are funded by the Rural
Utilities Service, there is an inherent tension between the
level of Government involvement and the role of the private
sector in providing services and financing. One recent example
of this is the debate over the Access to Local Television Act.
In your view, what are the public policy considerations
that justify the Government financing the provision of such
services to rural America?
Mr. McLean. Well, first and foremost, it is a vision of
this Nation being one Nation undivided, indivisible. Rural
Americans deserve the same level of service, the same quality
of service, the same access to information that we enjoy in the
great cities of America. And if we are going to be one Nation,
we have to make that commitment.
That statistic of 75/25, 75-percent of the land mass with
25-percent of the population, just recurs over and over and
over in my job. Seventy-five-percent of a market is profitable,
25-percent of the market needs special attention. The same
thing in rural infrastructure.
And as we move to competitive marketplaces, whether it is
in multi-channel video, whether it is in electricity, whether
it is in telecommunications, the need is for that 25-percent;
where the marketplace isn't going to pay the first attention;
needs special attention. That is the reason that programs like
the Rural Utilities Service, like universal service, in other
industries like essential air service or what used to be called
local freight rail assistance, are necessary in order to keep
rural America part of this one economy.
The Chairman. We appreciated your testimony earlier that I
referenced in our digital divide hearing as a part of that, and
you made a number of those points, I thought, very successfully
and cogently that day.
One of the issues facing rural America is the availability
of adequate health care and health providers. What role does
the Rural Utilities Service play in solving this problem?
Mr. McLean. We have a wonderful program called the Distance
Learning Telemedicine Program which this committee originated
and worked so hard to keep the support for that program strong.
In telemedicine, we see absolutely remarkable things
happening. A family, for example, can avoid hours of time in a
car to commute to see a doctor by just being able to visit a
local clinic and using telecommunications technologies in order
to have examinations and diagnosis and treatment.
It can also stabilize rural hospitals. What happens
frequently in health care is when a second opinion is required
and a patient needs to get into the car and go to the next
community to get the second opinion and surgery is required,
surgery usually takes place in that second place. So if you
could have teleconsultations where it was with doctors in the
larger communities, the patients can stay in their hometown
communities and they can have their treatments and their
surgery in their hometowns. That would help strengthen the
viability of rural hospitals and rural clinics.
We are just so excited. There are over 300 distance
learning telemedicine projects in operation right now under the
DLT program, and they are doing remarkable things and offering
real hope that you can live in a rural area but still have
access to the finest medical advice and finest medical
treatment anyone else would have.
The Chairman. Mr. McLean, many people are surprised to
learn that not all Americans even at this date have access to
clean, safe drinking water and indoor plumbing. Can you provide
us with an update on the Agency's efforts to combat this
problem? What percentage of Americans still lack these
facilities, and are they mostly in certain areas or is the
problem widespread?
Mr. McLean. The agency estimates based on 1990 census data
that when we began our program called Water 2000, there were
about 1 million folks without quality water systems or quality
water service. And we think we have made very steady progress
in knocking down that number. We estimate perhaps as many as
300,000 have been reduced.
In our water program, we do have a waiting list. There is
more demand for water projects than there are available
appropriations, and throughout rural America there is a serious
difficulty of aging infrastructure. I visited a community in
Big Springs, Nebraska, where the RUS loan was replacing a water
system that was built around 1911. This is something that
recurs all through America that the infrastructure is just
getting to the point where it needs to be replaced and
upgraded. And when you do that, you are also saving the
community because without that investment the community will
not be able to meet clean water standards and face a whole
number of challenges.
The Chairman. Senator Harkin?
Senator Harkin. Mr. Chairman, I have no questions. I think
you have covered them thoroughly. I just again recommend if you
have never done this, Chris, get the Congressional Record
debate on when the Senate was debating whether or not we would
establish the Rural Electrification Administration.
Mr. McLean. Yes, Sir.
Senator Harkin. You have read it. It is a great debate.
Mr. McLean. It is wonderful, Sir.
Senator Harkin. And it is appropriate to today's times, I
mean, because it was amazing how many people were arguing that
it was not the proper role of Government to string electric
lines out to rural areas. It is a wonderful debate and it is
just sort of appropriate to what we are doing right now as to
whether or not this is something that we can do and invest in
the future. That is how people saw it at that time, and those
that pushed it through were correct.
So I wish you the best in your new job. Please come and see
me about electro-farming sometime, will you?
Mr. McLean. Yes, Sir.
Senator Harkin. I won't get into that.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
The Chairman. Senator Conrad.
Senator Conrad. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Chris, before the Budget Committee this year, the head of
the General Accounting Office, Mr. Walker, whom I generally
have high regard for, said that the mission of the Rural
Utilities Service was complete and the Rural Utilities Service
should be phased out.
I told him, you know, I think that is a real misnomer
because obviously once a system has been built, it has got to
be rebuilt. I mean, the life of these things is not permanent,
and if we don't have a program that provides the financing for
those systems, very quickly we won't have a system.
I tell you, where we have got places in North Dakota that
have one customer per mile, anybody that thinks that adds up
without some kind of special assistance and some kind of
special support from the Federal Government just doesn't care
much about who is at the end of the line. I told him that it
would be phased out over my cold, dead body, and he called me
afterwards and said that he has listened carefully to what I
had said.
What would you say to him if he made that case to you?
Mr. McLean. I think our remarks would be very similar. The
mission of the Agency is never complete. It is simply more
expensive to serve rural America; on average, both in
telecommunications and electric, about three times more
expensive to serve rural America.
The consequence of not having a Rural Utilities Service
would be very simple. For rural citizens, rates would be
higher, quality would be lower, and economic growth would be
depressed. And that is a choice that I don't think this Nation
should make or ought to make. By providing that financing and
that quality assurance that this agency affords, the entire
Nation is benefitted.
A telephone in rural America doesn't just serve the folks
in that town; it serves the entire Nation. It is a value to New
York City and Chicago and Los Angeles that we can call Ravenna,
Nebraska, or that we can call Medina, North Dakota. And to just
walk away from the high cost of service in 75-percent of the
geography of this country would be reckless and irresponsible.
I appreciate your strong support for the program, and
nowhere is it more evident that it is necessary than a place
like North Dakota. And I have spent a lot of time in North
Dakota, particularly with Wally, and the vastness of the State
is, I think, unbelievable to folks maybe like the head of the
GAO. Seeing that is believing, and it is almost a miracle that
America has been able to accomplish electrification and
telecommunications and water in these most remote places.
Senator Conrad. Well, I thank you for that. I think those
are exactly the right answers, and it is critically important
that we continue to educate people. I frankly was stunned that
the head of the GAO wouldn't understand that a mission of an
agency like this one can never be completed. It is an ongoing
need to rebuild these systems. But, clearly, he is a highly
intelligent man. He really hadn't thought carefully about the
implications of his remarks.
So I thank you for that.
The Chairman. Thank you, Senator Conrad.
Senator Kerrey.
Senator Kerrey. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. McLean, one of the things that I would ask you to
examine if you are confirmed is whether or not RUS is capable
of producing an inventory, or perhaps capable of producing an
inventory in cooperation with the State regulatory commissions
that govern telecommunications companies to give Congress some
sense of where we are in terms of meeting the objective of the
1996 Telecom Act, which was that all communities have enhanced
telecommunications services.
First, the term itself is relatively vague, to put it
mildly, and is apt to be a moving target. So it is not quite as
easy as determining whether or not I have got twisted copper
pairs coming into every home, which is an easier goal under the
old Act to achieve.
I have got Chairman Kennard coming out to Nebraska. I have
asked him to do one of his field hearings out there and he is
going to do it. We sought to answer the question for the 500-
or-so communities in Nebraska to get a specific answer because
we keep struggling up against our inability to actually answer
the question. It is difficult to devise a strategy to achieve
the objective if we don't know where we are.
And we discovered that there just isn't the data. We just
aren't able to do it. So our office has been trying to put it
together on our own and it is exceptionally difficult to do. I
do think it is a piece of work that would benefit us in
Congress as we wrestle with the question of how do we achieve
this goal of universal access to enhanced services. But I also
think it would be very helpful in the partnerships that we have
developed between the various Federal agencies, including yours
and the FCC and the State public service commissions.
So I would appreciate it very much if you could do some
investigation as to whether or not you have the resources to do
it or whether or not it can be done in cooperation with other
Federal and State agencies that also have the responsibility
for carrying out this law.
Mr. McLean. In the very near future, the Rural Utilities
Service and the NTIA will be coming out with a report which was
requested by you, Senator Daschle, Senator Harkin and others
giving an initial assessment of the deployment of advanced
services.
One of the findings that we made in that report is that the
data that is publicly available is very difficult to grapple
with. But we were able to analyze public data, to interview
engineers, and validate what I think a lot of people understand
that the services are rolling out first in the cities, but that
there are some exceptions.
The FCC will be collecting more detailed information in the
next several months which I think will make the evaluation that
you request a little bit more comprehensive. And we would very
much be willing to continue work in this area because I think
it is vitally important.
Senator Kerrey. Well, Senator Daschle earlier this year had
some meetings with telecom providers, and I find it very
interesting that oftentimes the response to the problem is we
are already solving it. And it is very difficult to know if
that is true because we simply don't have good data that tells
us what is the switching capability in the community, what kind
of connectivity is there, what is the bandwidth capability that
communities have, and how does that compare to other
communities throughout the Nation.
As I said, it is so much more important than it was in the
old days when all I had to do was figure out whether or not I
could move voice. In the old days, it was real easy; I knew
when I had it. Today, it is not, and I think it is very
important that we get that information. Otherwise, it is going
to be difficult for us to measure our response in the correct
way.
Mr. McLean. In 1993, this committee, with the House
Agriculture Committee, enacted the English amendment to the
Rural Electrification Loan Restructuring Act which called for
State modernization planning of telecommunications. That has
guided our work at the Agency, and we tried to design
telecommunications systems which are capable of gracefully
evolving into advanced services.
We believe in our engineering studies that getting the
outside plant right is the most important thing. The distance
between the switch and the customer is the most important
factor, and you can evolve the switch to bring advanced
services. So among our R.U.S. borrowers, I think we have a good
handle on the quality of service and the capability of evolving
services to advanced levels. Outside of the RUS family is where
there is a real challenge in grappling with some of the data.
The Chairman. Senator Daschle.
Senator Daschle. Mr. Chairman, thank you for holding this
hearing. I would just want to emphasize how critically
important what Senator Kerrey has just said is understood. And
I know you totally appreciate that, Mr. McLean.
The telecommunications bill was really founded on two
pillars. It was founded on the competitor pillar and the
universal access pillar. I think we have got a long way to go
on both pillars if we are going to build them strongly enough
to create the kind of infrastructure in this country we need.
But I think, of the two pillars, we are lot farther ahead
in competition than we are in universal service. And whether or
not we have universal service in large measure is dependent
upon whether or not we have broadband access, and we don't have
it today in large portions of rural America. So I just hope
that the RUS will continue to press with all of its ability to
ensure that universal service is more than just a code word,
that it really is the reality out there, and these studies and
your work will be imperative in accomplishing that.
I thank you for your answer to Senator Kerrey, and
hopefully we can continue to work with you on it.
Mr. McLean. Thank you, and we are absolutely committed
within the Agency to the principle of universal service and
have attempted to be helpful, filing over 26 filings with the
Federal Communications Commission to assist them in their
implementation of the Telecom Act.
The Chairman. Well, thank you very much, Senator Daschle.
Thank you, Mr. McLean. I will work with the distinguished
Ranking Member for prompt action on your nomination in the
Committee, and we hope there will be similar consideration on
the floor. The distinguished Democratic Leader, I know, will
help to expedite that.
We thank you for your testimony and your answers, and we
wish you well and look forward to visiting with you.
Mr. McLean. I thank you, Mr. Chairman.
[Whereupon, at 10:10 a.m., the Committee was adjourned.]
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NOMINATION OF MICHAEL VINCENT DUNN TO BE MEMBER, FARM CREDIT
ADMINISTRATION
----------
THURSDAY, APRIL 27, 2000
U.S. Senate,
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry,
Washington, DC.
The Committee met, pursuant to notice, at 9:01 a.m., in
room SD-106, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. Richard G.
Lugar, (Chairman of the Committee), presiding.
Present or submitting a statement: Senators Lugar, Roberts,
Grassley, Harkin, Leahy, Conrad, and Baucus.
STATEMENT OF HON. RICHARD G. LUGAR, A U.S. SENATOR FROM
INDIANA, CHAIRMAN, COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE, NUTRITION, AND
FORESTRY
The Chairman. This hearing of the Senate Agriculture
Committee will come to order. The Committee will meet on two
matters this morning. The first will be a confirmation hearing
for Michael V. Dunn to be a member of the Farm Credit
Administration Board.
I would just say parenthetically that it has been the
policy of our committee to take up nominations by the
administration as promptly as we could following submission of
the proper paperwork and notification by the Secretary of
Agriculture or others in the administration that were
responsible. So we are doing that, even though we have a very
important second mission today, and that is a hearing on
concentration and competition in agriculture, this being the
fourth hearing on this subject the Committee has conducted in
the year 2000.
First, the confirmation of Mr. Dunn. A native of Iowa, Mr.
Dunn serves currently as the Under Secretary for Marketing and
Regulatory Programs at the United States Department of
Agriculture. Prior to that, he was Deputy Under Secretary for
Operations and Management in the rural economic and community
development mission at USDA. In addition, he has served as
Administrator of the former Farmers Home Administration at the
Department of Agriculture.
Mr. Dunn is no stranger to this committee. From 1987 to
1988 he worked as a professional staff member under the
chairmanship of Senator Leahy. The availability, efficiency,
and affordability of agricultural credit remains a very
important issue to members of this committee and to American
agriculture in general. As a member of the Farm Credit
Administration Board, Mr. Dunn would play an important role in
the future of farm credit. We are pleased to have him before
the Committee today. We look forward to hearing from him.
Before recognizing Mr. Dunn for his statement, let me
recognize my colleague, Senator Grassley, for any comment he
might wish to make about Mr. Dunn prior to my swearing in the
witness and hearing his testimony. Senator Grassley?
STATEMENT OF HON. CHARLES E. GRASSLEY, A U.S. SENATOR FROM IOWA
Senator Grassley. Well, I have had an opportunity to speak
about Mr. Dunn many times that he has been before this
committee and to remind people that he is from my home State of
Iowa, and we congratulate him on his appointment. More
importantly, we compliment him on doing a very good job in
several different capacities here, both in the private sector
and the public sector, doing things for agriculture. And we
know that in his further position that he is going to still
continue his outstanding work for agriculture.
The Chairman. Thank you very much, Senator.
Would you rise, Mr. Dunn, and please raise your right hand?
Do you swear that the testimony you are about to present is the
truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you
God?
Mr. Dunn. I do.
The Chairman. Thank you.
Let me mention that Mr. Dunn is accompanied today by his
wife, Brook, and two of their sons, Matt and Carey. Would you
please stand and be recognized? Thank you very much for coming
to this hearing.
Mr. Dunn, you are recognized for your opening testimony.
TESTIMONY OF MICHAEL VINCENT DUNN, OF WEST VIRGINIA, TO BE
MEMBER, FARM CREDIT ADMINISTRATION
Mr. Dunn. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman, and thank you
for the kind words from Senator Grassley.
I am honored to be nominated by the President for the
appointment to the Board of the Farm Credit Administration. I
am very grateful to the chairman and the Committee for holding
this nomination hearing.
This will be the third time that I have appeared before
this committee for a nomination: once in 1993 to become the
Administrator of Farmers Home Administration, and again in 1995
for confirmation as a member of the Commodity Credit
Corporation and as the Assistant Secretary for Agriculture for
Marketing and Regulatory Programs.
Mr. Chairman, as a former member of the professional staff
of this committee, I know how hard you and the Committee worked
in 1987 to address the agricultural credit crisis that faced
this Nation. Hours of hearings, markups, and conference
meetings with the House resulted in the passage of one of the
most successful pieces of legislation ever crafted by this
committee.
As a result of the Committee's hard work, we now have a
revitalized Federal lending institution at the Farm Service
Agency, a viable secondary market at Farmers Mac for commercial
banks, and a strong cooperative lending institution in the Farm
Credit System that not only repaid its Federal obligations in
full but did it ahead of schedule. Thanks to this committee, we
have a healthy, well-capitalized Farm Credit System with the
added safety of an insurance fund.
Today, the Farm Credit System holds about 27-percent of the
$172.8 billion of farm debt, according to Economic Research
Service's December 1999 Agricultural Income and Finance
Situation Outlook Report. However, this same report warns that
persistence in low commodity prices in 2000 will aggravate cash
flow problems in farm businesses. At least one in four farm
businesses will not cover cash expenses. This warning should be
of great concern to the Farm Credit System as it is chartered
as a single-purpose lending institution for agricultural
credit. It should also be of concern to our Federal Government
because of the special status that the Farm Credit System holds
as a Government-sponsored entity.
Given the dependency of agriculture on credit and the
volatility of today's commodity prices, I believe it is
imperative to have all the board members of the Farm Credit
Administration positions filled. This board has an important
role to fulfill. As stated in the Agency's mission statement,
the Farm Credit Administration will provide a safe and sound
competitive Farm Credit System to finance agriculture in rural
American as authorized by Congress.
Mr. Chairman, I believe that my background in rural
development, agricultural credit, and regulatory programs,
coupled with the valuable experience gained while working for
this committee on agricultural credit, would allow me to
provide a positive contribution as a member of the board of the
Farm Credit Administration. Once again, I appreciate the time
and effort of the chairman, the Committee, and the staff in
holding this hearing. I will be happy to answer any questions
that you might have.
The Chairman. Thank you very much, Mr. Dunn.
My first question is the question we always raise with each
nominee. Do you agree that, if confirmed, you will appear
before any duly constituted committee of Congress if asked?
Mr. Dunn. I do agree.
The Chairman. I thank you for that response.
Let me just mention as background for this nomination that
there are, in fact, two nomination items, both involved
yourself. One is for the unexpired term of the late Marsha
Martin, and that term expires October 13 this year, 2000. You
have also been nominated for a 6-year term following the
expiration of that first term. The normal term of each member
of this board is 6-years, and there are three members of the
board.
Now, currently, the other members of the board are Ann
Jorgensen, a Republican, whose term expires May 21, 2002, and
Mr. Michael Reyna, a Democrat, whose term expires May 21, 2004.
The second term for which you are being nominated would expire
apparently in 2006, October 13, 2006.
Now, the predicament is simply this, and that is that you
would be nominated and potentially confirmed for a term that
carries through the next administration, that is, the next
President of the United States, and into the following term of
that President or his or her successor, as the case may be. And
there are just three members of the board--one of them a
Democrat, one a Republican. Mr Reyna, a Democrat, his term
carries through all the way to May 21, 2004.
Therefore, if you were confirmed for the second term of two
Democrats, a majority, two out of three of the board, are
confirmed really through almost the entirety of that next
administration. I raise that question not in any derogatory
fashion with regard to your nomination, but just simply from
the standpoint of the fact we are having an election in this
country this year, which there may be a Republican nominee
elected or there may be a Democratic nominee elected.
In the latter case, presumably a Democratic nominee, Mr.
Gore, might very well wish for you to continue. The Republican
nominee, Mr. Bush, might not. He might prefer to have two
Republicans as board members, which I think is a reasonable and
logical assumption.
So I am not certain what the Committee's disposition ought
to be of this. I raise this for members to consider. If they
don't consider it in this committee, they certainly will
consider it on the floor of the Senate, and it is an issue I
think the administration needs to consider. But notwithstanding
that, we wanted to have the hearing in good faith to make
certain that we move the nomination in a proper way so that all
of the issues with regard to your qualifications were clear.
And so if it is the will of the Committee, we could have a
markup and consideration then by the full Senate of both
nominations or one nomination, as the case may be.
But I mention that, not really asking for your comment, but
simply as the lay of the land of a political situation that has
arisen as we consider the nomination.
Mr. Dunn. Mr. Chairman.
The Chairman. Yes.
Mr. Dunn. If I could briefly respond to that, because I
think it is a grave consideration for the Committee and for the
administration as a whole.
I know this committee during my tenure working here has
always been very, very bipartisan. I think everybody involved
in it, staff members are aggies first and then something else
later on, and that has worked very, very well for this
particular committee.
I have been nominated in the past by a Republican Governor
to serve on State boards, and I consider myself a professional
in this arena, and I would certainly want to carry out in a
bipartisan manner the mandates of Congress.
Notwithstanding that, I think there is also another
consideration here. There was recently an article about the
length of time it takes for nominations to be made, and having
gone through this process for the third time, I can say amen to
that. It does take a considerable amount of time. It is not
unheard of for nominations to go a year or longer.
I think that the volatility that we currently have in
commodity prices simply dictates that we need to have these
positions filled, and we cannot wait the length of time it
would take to get a fulfillment. Even if there was a new
administration getting a new person in there, this is not
probably a top priority for any administration. It is always to
get the Secretaries filled immediately. So it may not be until
2002 that we would have a position filled here.
So I think it is extremely important that we have for the
sake of agriculture, agricultural credit, and the Farm Credit
System that board fully filled.
The Chairman. I appreciate that comment. My own view is
that we always have tried on this committee to fill every
position simply because all of our boards and the
administration of USDA works better with nominees in place. I
would mention that at least it has been the usual policy in the
Farm Credit Administration that after a term expires, unless
there is someone nominated, or at least immediately available--
and this is at the discretion of the office holder at the
time--that person continues until a successor, maybe himself,
is renominated and confirmed.
But, in any event, this is simply a preliminary issue
without regard to qualification, and I want to fence it off in
that way.
Let me ask about qualifications. What do you consider your
major accomplishments during your tenure as Under Secretary of
Marketing and Regulatory Programs at USDA or at the Farmers
Home Administration? Can you give some flavor of those
achievements?
Mr. Dunn. Well, let me start with the Farmers Home
Administration, because that was at a point in time when we
were doing a restructuring of USDA and I was responsible for
that total restructuring and moving Farmers Home, the old
Farmers Home Administration into the new Farm Service Agency.
And that was a major accomplishment, getting that through and
ensuring that it took place with as little disruption as
possible.
Also, for years and years, Farmers Home was known as the
lender of last resort, and that always bothered me because I
thought that it really should have been the lender of first
opportunity for people. And for them to be able to do that,
that would mandate that the men and women who worked for
Farmers Home Administration offer supervised credit for the
recipients of FmHA and now Farm Service Agency loans. These are
folks that could not get loans from other commercial lending
institutions.
And so one of the major pushes that I had as Administrator
was to ensure that we had supervised credit which would thus
provide a greater opportunity for those folks to succeed and
eventually graduate into commercial credit.
As the Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory
Programs, I have had the opportunity to address such issues as
concentration that is coming up. I have been in front of this
committee three times, I believe, on this particular issue.
The Chairman. This year.
Mr. Dunn. Yes, Sir. And it is a major concern for us. The
organic rule coming out of Ag Marketing Service, the milk
marketing order reform, those have been major issues at
Marketing and Regulatory Programs. And the overall protection
of animal and plant health under APHIS has also been a major
concern with the invasive species that we have, ensuring the
eradication of such diseases as tuberculosis, brucellosis,
pseudorabies, etc.
As the Under Secretary, I was responsible for over one-half
of all the statutory laws covering the Department of
Agriculture, and that gave me a great deal of experience in
writing regulations and being the chief regulator.
The Chairman. Thank you very much for those responses.
Let me call--I appreciate you were here first, Senator
Conrad, but I want to recognize my colleague, Senator Leahy,
the distinguished former Chairman of the Committee and,
likewise, a very close friend of our nominee. Senator Leahy?
STATEMENT OF HON. PATRICK J. LEAHY, A U.S. SENATOR FROM VERMONT
Senator Leahy. Well, thank you, Mr. Chairman. I thank you
for your usual courtesy and, Senator Conrad, I thank you, too.
Mike, I have to apologize. I seem to have hit every single
wrong street on the way coming in today. In fact, for the
traffic reports, all they had to do was put something on my car
and they could tell you where every accident occurred. I was
not in any of them, but it was always three cars ahead. I
wanted to be here right at the opening of this because, Mr.
Chairman, I wanted to just say a few words about Mike Dunn, not
only one of the most professional people I have ever worked
with but also a close personal friend.
I don't get to really introduce him to the Committee. He is
Under Secretary of Agriculture. He was on my staff on this
committee. He is well-known to everybody on the Committee. He
has worked very well with both Republicans and Democrats on
this committee. I can't think of a better nominee for this
position. I mean that truly.
Mike worked night and day in 1987 for months after month on
the Agricultural Credit Act of 1987. You may recall that at the
beginning of that, Mr. Chairman, his hair, your hair, and mine
were jet black, and you see what happened to all three of us.
The only difference is you retained your hair.
[Laughter.]
The Chairman. So did Mike.
Senator Leahy. No, but seriously, the Agricultural Credit
Act of 1987, that was hailed a landmark legislation by Time
Magazine. Mike, I think you remember that. It brought the Farm
Credit System back from the brink of financial disaster.
A lot of us worked together on that act along with Mike.
Mr. Chairman, you did and Senator Cochran and Daschle and Helms
and Harkin, McConnell and I. Not only did we save the Farm
Credit System, but I think the thing that gave us all the most
pleasure, we did it without costing taxpayers a penny. And Mike
helped bring us through all the different things to do that. I
think that work alone would make him a great nominee for this
job, but he also worked with the farm credit banks of Omaha as
vice president, doing an outstanding job as Under Secretary for
Marketing and Regulatory Programs.
I am glad to see Brook and Matt and Carey here. It's also
``Bring Your Child to Work Day.'' I want you to know, this is
not your Dad's normal workday. He doesn't usually get in here
and get praised by everybody. There is always somebody that
might send a letter who doesn't really understand what he does
and doesn't praise him, but here he will be. It is like Ed
Baron who has brought Stephen here to work with him, and others
have.
So I hope you will be confirmed quickly, but, Mr. Chairman,
I just wanted to make those personal comments because he is a
dear friend, but he is also one of the most extraordinarily
qualified people I have worked with in my years in the Senate.
The Chairman. I thank the Senator.
Senator Grassley.
Senator Grassley. I have no questions. I made my comments
already, and I will leave it go at that and congratulate him a
second time.
The Chairman. Senator Conrad.
STATEMENT OF HON. KENT CONRAD, A U.S. SENATOR FROM NORTH DAKOTA
Senator Conrad. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I want to join
Senator Leahy in praising this nominee. I have known Mike Dunn
as a consummate professional, both before he served in the
administration and during his time in the administration.
I would hope, Mr. Chairman, given the fact we have an
opening and we have an administration in place, that we would
not shrink from sending this name forward and hopefully that he
will receive confirmation.
You know, I do worry about kind of what we see happening to
nominees. I hope very much for whatever the next administration
is that we find a better way on a bipartisan basis to deal with
these nominees, because my observation is both Republican
nominees in previous administrations, nominees in this
administration, have been put through a tortuous course that
doesn't serve anybody very well. And the nomination process has
gotten worse and worse and worse from my observation, more
partisan, and I am beginning to wonder if anybody is going to
want to serve in any of these administrations. We have become
so intrusive and so difficult with nominees.
Here we have a case where there is an opening on the
Administration that is critically important to the
administration of credit for agriculture. We need to have that
third position filled. Mr. Dunn is eminently qualified and I
think has demonstrated to everybody that he is evenhanded. I
have never seen a hint of partisanship, I might say--not a hint
of it--in his positions. And I hope we take that into account.
He is a professional. This is an agency that desperately
needs professional leadership, and I hope we will treat it in
that way.
Finally, Mr. Chairman, if I could say on a personal note,
my experiences with Mr. Dunn--I mean, there have been times,
frankly, I have disagreed with him, sometimes heatedly, which
he will recall. But I have admired him because he has been
professional and he is deeply knowledgeable. And goodness
knows, with the state of agriculture today, we need that kind
of quality and that kind of character.
I thank the Chairman.
Senator Leahy. Mr. Chairman, if I can just add something to
that. One thing, too, that makes a difference is who is--I
mean, the responsibility has to be so strongly on members. What
Senator Conrad has said is correct. And, Mr. Chairman, at the
risk of having you drummed out of the Republican Party, let me
say that you have always been one who has kept his word, who
has worked to lower this decibel level.
I am afraid some of us don't, and I think that what Senator
Conrad has said is true. We get too intrusive. We get too much
the point of almost as though people have some terrible
ulterior motive if they want to serve the public interest and
want to serve in Government, usually at great financial
sacrifice. And I compliment you for what you have done. I think
all of us in both parties have got to follow what Senator
Conrad has said and tell our leadership and everything else we
have got to lower the decibel level.
The Chairman. I thank the Senator for his comment. I would
just thank the Committee, really, for approaching the
nominations in a bipartisan fashion. We have, I think,
expedited each of the nominations and have brought them to a
vote quickly in our committee, and in due course on the Senate
floor, they have all been dealt with favorably. I think that is
sort of beyond our pay grade, but we will at least in this
committee attempt to do the best that we can.
Senator Roberts.
STATEMENT OF HON. PAT ROBERTS, A U.S. SENATOR FROM KANSAS
Senator Roberts. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I like Mike and
wish him well.
I yield back.
[Laughter.]
The Chairman. Senator Baucus.
Senator Baucus. Did you say ``Mike'' or ``Ike''?
[Laughter.]
Senator Roberts. Well, both, if you want to bring it up.
STATEMENT OF HON. MAX BAUCUS, A U.S. SENATOR FROM MONTANA
Senator Baucus. Mr. Chairman, all of us know Mike Dunn and
have the very same view. I cannot think of anybody that I have
met and dealt with in this administration or any other who is
more--the word ``professional'' has been used here. That is
certainly accurate. I would add a few more adjectives. One is
he is very open. He has always got an open mind. He is always
thinking and asking what you have on your mind, not closed-
minded or dogmatic.
In addition to that, he is always upbeat, always
optimistic, always trying to find a solution, which is, I
think, a hallmark of a very good public servant, serving,
trying to find answers to some of these problems. And he is
certainly one who knows agriculture backwards, forwards, and
inside out, just really a good guy.
Whatever you do, Mike, I wish you very well, and I hope
this nomination proceeds very quickly, and in other jobs you
have in life, I know you will do well, and I wish you the very
best.
Mr. Dunn. Thank you, Senator.
The Chairman. Thank you very much, Senator Baucus.
Senator Harkin.
STATEMENT OF HON. TOM HARKIN, A U.S. SENATOR FROM IOWA, RANKING
MEMBER, COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE, NUTRITION, AND FORESTRY
Senator Harkin. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. I
apologize. I went over to the Russell Building for this
hearing, and then I figured out it was someplace else. I should
look at my schedule.
First of all, I am just proud to have this opportunity to
express my strong support for the nomination of Mike Dunn to
the board of the Farm Credit Administration. I can tell all of
you I have known Mike Dunn for 30-years now--30-years--and I
can assure you that he is eminently well qualified for this
position. His experience and background in ag credit and all
the related matters will serve him well. I can tell you that
deep down he has a strong commitment to agriculture and to our
farm families, rural communities. He is a very conscientious
and dedicated public servant.
I think it would be hard to find anyone with a stronger
background in farm credit matters, the positions he has held in
the Farm Credit System institutions, area director,
Administrator of the former Farmers Home Administration. He did
really great work for this committee helping us find solutions
to the farm credit crisis of the 1980s, and he worked long
hours and long weeks to get over those credit problems in the
1980s.
So, Mr. Chairman, he is eminently well qualified. He will
do a great job on the FCA Board, and I hope we can get this
nomination through and get him on board in a hurry. He is a
great guy. Congratulations, Mike.
Mr. Dunn. Thank you, Senator.
The Chairman. Thank you very much, Senator Harkin.
Are there any further questions of the nominee by Senators?
[No response.]
Hearing no requests for further comment, we thank you, Mr.
Dunn, for appearing before the Committee, and we will try to
progress with our consideration of the nomination as promptly
as possible.
Mr. Dunn. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I appreciate that very
much.
[Whereupon, at 9:30 a.m., the Committee was adjourned.]
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