[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 53 (Thursday, April 22, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Page S4294]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    RECOGNITION OF DANIEL T. BRANTON

 Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I am pleased to commend Daniel T. 
Branton of Leland, MS, for his distinguished service as president of 
Delta Council this year.
  Delta Council is an economic development organization representing 
the 18 Delta and part-Delta counties of Northwest Mississippi. 
Organized in 1935, Delta Council has worked to bring together the 
agriculture and business leadership of the region to focus on the 
challenges which face the economy and the people of the Mississippi 
delta.
  Ad president of Delta Council and a farm leader, Dan has been a 
strong proponent of maintaining the agricultural policies which were 
adopted in the 2002 Farm Law. As a representative voice of farmers from 
the Delta region which produces more than $3 billion of agricultural 
goods annually, Dan's advice on matters affecting agriculture has been 
invaluable to me and my staff as we attempt to address those issues 
which will ensure the future viability of American agriculture.
  Dan has been a strong proponent of Delta Council's programs in 
education and health care. During Dan's year as president, the teacher 
shortage programs which evolved from earlier Delta Council policies 
have expanded in a way that is having a meaningful impact on the 
problem of attracting school teachers to rural areas.
  I am pleased that I have had the opportunity to work with Dan and 
Delta Council to make certain that special health care needs in areas 
such as the Mississippi Delta, where there is a large underserved 
population, have been enhanced. Through Delta Council's efforts to 
establish the Delta Health Alliance, a new Federal and local 
partnership is now producing extraordinary outcomes. In the area of 
transportation and water resource improvement, Dan has coordinated the 
activities of Delta Council in a manner which has brought local 
consensus to very touch issues facing the Delta's economic future. Dan 
has been a leader in all aspects of Delta Council's work while 
maintaining a successful family farming operation.
  Dan has also been a leader in his community. He currently serves as 
president of Burdette Gin Company and is a director of Leland Compress. 
He is also a delegate and has served as a director of the National 
Cotton Council. Dan serves on the Black Bayou Drainage Commission and 
is a former member of the Advisory Board for the Mississippi Department 
of Agriculture and Commerce.
  I congratulate Dan Branton for his contributions to the Delta region, 
the State of Mississippi, and the Nation. I look forward to his future 
contributions in improving the quality of life for our 
citizens.

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