[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 57 (Thursday, March 31, 2022)]
[House]
[Pages H4064-H4066]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  THE STRENGTH OF AMERICAN AGRICULTURE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of 
January 4, 2021, the Chair recognizes the gentleman from Kansas (Mr. 
Mann) for 30 minutes.


                             General Leave

  Mr. MANN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their marks and submit 
extraneous material on this Special Order.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Kansas?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. MANN. Mr. Speaker, I am honored to host this Special Order during 
National Agriculture Month on the strength of American agriculture. I 
am inspired by the American farmers, ranchers, and agricultural 
producers who feed, fuel, and clothe not only this country but the 
entire world.
  I grew up on a farm south of Quinter, Kansas, that my parents and 
brother still operate. Growing up there meant that I spent thousands of 
hours on a tractor working in fields and on horseback doctoring sick 
cattle in the family feed yard. Those hours turned into love of country 
and lessons about the values of hard work, creativity, flexibility, and 
putting others before ourselves.
  My district, the Big First of Kansas, is home to more than 60,000 
farms where farmers, ranchers, feedlot managers, ethanol producers, ag 
lenders, and agribusiness owners ensure that America remains the most 
food-secure country in the world.
  As Congress becomes increasingly urban, the distance from farm to 
fork has never been greater, and since America's national security 
depends in large part on our food security, we need strong voices for 
agriculture in this Congress, which is why I am honored to serve on the 
House Agriculture Committee and to host this Special Order tonight.
  If Congress is going to legislate effectively on matters relating to 
agriculture, Congress must first understand the agricultural 
perspective in America. There is something about being in the middle of 
the country where farmers pray for rain, parents drive 30 miles both 
ways just to take their kids to school, and communities shrink and grow 
with oil and gas prices that gives you a greater perspective.
  House Agriculture Committee Republican leader GT Thompson and I just 
returned from a trip to my district. While there, we saw an American 
heartland infused with both the innovative energy that creates new 
ideas and the love of tradition that respects tried-and-true methods. 
We saw the USDA National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility that will take 
American agriculture into the future, and we met with the family who 
owns and operates Brookover Feed Yards, one of the first feedlots in 
Kansas. We also saw oil production, ag lending, ethanol production, 
wheat innovation, and the next generation of leaders in food and 
agriculture at Kansas State University.
  I look forward to celebrating the culmination of National Agriculture 
Month with my colleagues here tonight as we celebrate the force, 
passion, and strength of American agriculture.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. 
Thompson), a descendant of dairy farmers, a champion of rural 
development, my friend who joined me just last week on an agriculture 
tour of my district in Kansas, and the Republican leader of the House 
Agriculture Committee.
  Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I thank Congressman Mann 
for yielding and for hosting this Special Order tonight on an industry 
that I believe is the most important industry in America. It is 
the industry that impacts and touches the lives of American families 
more times in a given day than any other. It is not just the food. It 
is the fiber; it is the building materials; it is the energy resources; 
it is the economy.

  I am honored to be here. I am proud to be the Republican leader of 
the House Agriculture Committee, where we celebrate the contributions 
of American farmers, ranchers, producers, and foresters all year long.
  Farm country is no stranger to struggle, and the past couple of years 
have been a punch to the gut. Between a global pandemic, historic fires 
and floods, wind events, and a President who is waging a never-ending 
war on agriculture, times have been particularly tough.
  The supply chain crisis paired with skyrocketing inflation is kicking 
our farm families while they are down--folks who buy retail, sell 
wholesale, and pay shipping each way; the men and women who work around 
the clock to provide us with a safe and reliable food supply.
  But rural America is tough; rural America is resilient; and rural 
America is the backbone of this Nation.
  I am grateful to Congressman Mann for being on our farm team, as well 
as all the other agriculture advocates who will be speaking this 
evening.
  Before I go, I specifically recognize Pennsylvania's contribution to 
agriculture, which is the Commonwealth's

[[Page H4065]]

number one industry. One out of every seven jobs is directly or 
indirectly related to agriculture: 59,000 farms; 280,500 direct jobs; 
and more than $135 billion in revenue, or about 18 percent of 
Pennsylvania's economy. Agriculture's impact in the Keystone State is 
undeniable.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank the families, the men and women who work 24/7, 
365 days a year to feed, to clothe, and to fuel this great Nation. Once 
again, thanks to Congressman Mann for leading this important Special 
Order.
  Mr. MANN. Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Thompson for being here tonight 
and sharing with us thoughts about Pennsylvania agriculture. It is very 
important to this country.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Newhouse), 
who is a third-generation family farmer and good friend. I always 
appreciate his perspectives of Washington State agriculture and what he 
brings to this body.
  Mr. NEWHOUSE. Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Mann for his leadership and 
also for hosting us tonight on this special occasion to talk about 
American agriculture.
  I am truly proud to stand with my colleagues to talk about something 
that affects and impacts every single person not only in this room but 
listening tonight: the American agriculture industry.
  In central Washington, where I am from, I know our industry is made 
up of honest, hardworking, freedom-loving Americans that provide food 
and fiber for this Nation. My community is home to some of the most 
dedicated, innovative agricultural producers in the entire country.
  Washington farmers and ranchers produce over 300 different 
commodities, including high-quality hay, wheat, beef, dairy, wine 
grapes, hops--which I raise--potatoes, cherries, mint, and, of course, 
Washington's iconic apples.
  Blessed with the conditions to produce such a diverse range of crops, 
central Washington is proud to share its natural abundance to help feed 
the country and feed the world. Those of us who live there have a deep 
appreciation for our Nation's farmers and recognize how important it is 
that we have a strong domestic agricultural sector.
  But lately, unfortunately, the President and his far-left Democrats 
are so focused on radically altering the country with their trillion-
dollar spending proposals, they are blind to the impacts their own 
policies are already having on Americans across the country. The cost 
of living is at a 40-year high and still going up. Now, they are 
looking to raise taxes again on small businesses, on family farms.
  As a lifetime farmer and former director of the Department of 
Agriculture for the State of Washington and current chairman of the 
Congressional Western Caucus, I understand the vested interests that we 
all share in supporting our agricultural producers. I am proud to join 
my House Republican colleagues in advocating against burdensome 
regulations that impact rural communities and for real solutions, not 
just empty promises, to help our farmers and our ranchers, our 
farmworkers, and all Americans, who deserve a strong food supply chain.
  I introduced the first serious agricultural labor reform bill to pass 
the House in over 30 years, the Farm Workforce Modernization Act, to 
ensure that those who wish to come to our country, abide by our laws, 
and contribute to our farms, ranches, and local communities are able to 
do so.
  I, along with my Republican colleagues, am leading efforts to stop 
our foreign adversaries, such as Communist China, from gobbling up 
American farmland and taking control of our food supply chain.

  I am protecting our hydroelectric dams in the Northwest that provide 
irrigation water, baseload power for central Washington and beyond, and 
serve as a sustainable and efficient way to transport our Nation's 
crops. The Columbia River barges carry more than 50 percent of U.S. 
wheat destined for export, and barging on the Columbia and Snake Rivers 
system keeps--get this--700,000 semitrucks off the roads and their 
emissions out of the air each and every year.
  I am leading the entire Congressional Western Caucus in fighting 
against this administration's efforts to revive the single-most 
overreaching Federal regulatory action in history. It is called the 
waters of the United States rule, or the WOTUS rule. This dangerous 
policy empowers Federal bureaucrats to place every single body of 
water--every ditch, every puddle, every stream--under Federal 
regulation. As a result, the livelihoods of our farmers and rural 
communities across the Nation--not just in Washington; all over the 
country--are at stake.
  While it is clear to me, just as I know it is clear to my 
constituents, President Biden and Democrats are failing to display the 
leadership America needs and deserves, there is a silver lining here. 
American agriculture is strong. We have overcome far worse, and we will 
not let these radical policies hold us back from the job of feeding 
this Nation.
  I call on the administration to take a good long look at how their 
policies are harming us here in central Washington and in rural 
communities across the country and take immediate steps to reverse 
them. We deserve far better.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Mann for helping recognize the importance of 
American agriculture, and I appreciate his leadership.

                              {time}  1945

  Mr. MANN. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the gentleman. His leadership in 
agriculture, his leadership for the Western Caucus are very, very 
important, and I thank him for joining us tonight.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Keller), 
a staunch defender of farmers in his district and a fellow 
Congressional FFA Caucus member.
  Mr. KELLER. Mr. Speaker, I thank Congressman Mann for yielding.
  Mr. Speaker, as National Agriculture Month comes to a close, I am 
reminded of a speech Paul Harvey delivered to the FFA in 1978. No truer 
words have ever been spoken about America's farmers.
  Listening to the speech brings back memories of the days spent 
working with my stepdad on his farm. This is a tribute, again, to 
America's farmers, the work they do. And when I read this speech, it 
reminds me, I can see my stepdad those days working. But it is a 
tribute to all of the farmers in our great country.
  So here are a few of the excerpts that I really like from this 
speech, and it goes like this.
  It begins:

       And on the 8th day, God looked down on his planned 
     paradise, and said, ``I need a caretaker.''
       So God made a farmer.
       God said, I need somebody who can shape an ax handle from a 
     persimmon sprout, shoe a horse with a hunk of car tire, who 
     can make a harness out of haywire, feed sacks and shoe 
     scraps. Whose planting time and harvest season will finish 
     his 40-hour week by Tuesday noon, and then pain'n from 
     tractor back, put in another 72 hours.
       So God made a farmer.
       It had to be somebody who'd plow deep and straight and not 
     cut corners. Somebody to seed, weed, feed, breed, and rake 
     and disc and plow and plant and tie the fleece and strain the 
     milk and replenish the self-feeder and finish a hard week's 
     work with a 5-mile drive to church.
       Somebody who would bale a family together with the soft, 
     strong bonds of sharing, who would laugh, and then sigh, and 
     then reply, with smiling eyes, when his son says that he 
     wants to spend his life doing what dad does.
       So God made a farmer.
       Thank you to America's farmers. This is a tribute to the 
     work that you do every day on behalf of not just the United 
     States, but our world.

  Mr. MANN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Pennsylvania for 
joining us tonight. And as you were reading that, I thought about my 
family, my grandparents and many producers all over America that that 
describes. Thank you very much for sharing that.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Illinois (Mrs. Miller), 
who runs a grain and livestock farm with her husband and who has raised 
her children to be the 4th generation of farmers on her family farm in 
Illinois.
  Mrs. MILLER of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I thank Congressman Mann for 
hosting this Special Order.
  Mr. Speaker, at the conclusion of National Agriculture Month, I would 
like to share how strongly I believe in the family farm as part of the 
American way of life. It has truly been a blessing to have our sons--
who are the 4th generation--and their children--the 5th generation--
working our land.
  I am proud to be an Illinois farmer and to represent the farmers' 
needs in

[[Page H4066]]

Congress and on the Ag Committee. If Americans are hungry, really, what 
else matters?
  The agriculture industry keeps Americans and the world fed, fueled, 
and clothed. I am so thankful for the work that the ag industry does 
and for their contributions to the GDP and Illinois and across our 
Nation.
  America is on a dangerous path, losing our self-sufficiency in 
farming, which is why I introduced a bill in Congress to prevent China 
from buying up our farmland. Biden and the Democrats continue to push 
policies that promote Chinese-made batteries and solar panels instead 
of American biofuels.
  National Agriculture Month is a great time to thank our farmers, 
ranchers, and agriculture professionals for their tireless work.
  Mr. MANN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from Illinois for 
joining us tonight.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from California (Mr. Valadao), 
who represents our Nation's largest dairy district. He and his family 
operate a dairy farm; lives at the dairy.
  Mr. VALADAO. Mr. Speaker, this is a great honor to be able to speak 
about the great people that feed our country.
  Mr. Speaker, I am proud to represent the farmers that feed the world. 
With less than 1 percent of our Nation's farmland, the Central Valley 
supplies a quarter of our Nation's food. Our well-deserved reputation 
as America's breadbasket comes from the help of nature and a whole lot 
of hard work and skill from our farmers, ranchers, and producers. But 
without water, we cannot grow our Nation's food at all.
  Our Central Valley farming community has endured drought conditions 
and low water allocations for years. At a time when even the President 
is warning about global food shortages, we need to be supporting our 
agriculture producers here at home. That includes making sure that the 
Central Valley has the water they need to continue providing food for 
the world. We must fix complex and contradictory laws, court decisions, 
and regulations, and improve water storage infrastructure to bring more 
water to the Valley.
  The livelihoods of my constituents and our global food supply depend 
on it.
  Mr. MANN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for joining us tonight.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Ellzey), the 
pride of Levelland, Texas, who farmed and ranched in the Texas 
Panhandle before he came to Congress.
  Mr. ELLZEY. Mr. Speaker, I come before the House of Representatives 
to bring attention to National Agriculture Month. And, of course, 
before I begin my prepared remarks, I want to talk about what we see 
going on in Ukraine and Russia.

  Ukraine is the breadbasket of that region. And 30 percent of all of 
the world's grain, wheat, is produced in that region. And as we talk 
about this today, and in a few months we are going to be talking about 
it even more, about how the farms and ranches of the United States feed 
the entire world.
  Over the past couple of years our farmers have faced unprecedented 
obstacles from COVID, COVID lockdowns, labor shortages, supply chain 
disruptions, high fuel prices, and record-high fertilizer prices. But 
as always, they have overcome those challenges, and they have kept 
Americans and the world fed during a time of great uncertainty.
  Each American farmer feeds more than 165 people. Texas leads the 
Nation in the number of farms and ranches, with 248,416 farms and 
ranches covering 127 million acres. The ag industry is the pillar of a 
healthy and prosperous nation. And in the 6th Congressional District of 
Texas, we have a long history of farming and ranching. We are home to 
families like the Beeklys, the Patmans, the Buchholzes, the Borns, and 
the Dineens.
  Many of them have earned the title of a ``Texas Century Farm'' or 
Texas Century Ranch.'' Those titles are only given to families that 
have served our country as farmers and ranchers for over 100 years. 
Families who get up before dawn to tend to crops and herd cattle. They 
are part of over 5,000 farms and ranches in my district.
  So if you fed your family today, thank a farmer. Thank a rancher. And 
in Texas, thank a neighbor.
  Mr. MANN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Texas for joining 
us, and representing Texas in such a legacy of agriculture in a great 
State.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank everyone who spoke today for helping Congress 
understand an agricultural perspective. As Dwight Eisenhower--who was 
from my State, from my district--said, Farming looks mighty easy when 
your plow is a pencil, and you are a thousand miles away from a 
cornfield. Today, it felt like the Members who spoke on this floor 
brought the farm a little closer to Capitol Hill, and for that, I thank 
them.
  Congress uses the reauthorization of the farm bill every 5 years to 
determine the nature of our support for the men and women who feed, 
fuel, and clothe the world. America's food security is so important 
because it determines the strength of our national security. We will 
never be a secure country if we have to rely on other countries to feed 
ourselves.
  Because of the tenacity of the American farmer, we are the most food 
secure country in the world, and I will do everything in my power to 
keep it that way.
  As Congress determines how we will support farmers, ranchers, and 
agricultural producers in the 2023 farm bill, I encourage Members to 
imagine how different their lives would be without healthy American 
agriculture. From the food on our tables to the fuel in our cars to the 
fibers in our clothing to the roofs over our head, agriculture is all 
around us, and we tend to take it for granted.
  Well, it isn't granted. It is gifted. Every day American farmers, 
ranchers, and agricultural producers give us the gift of our quality of 
life in this country. Our comforts come from the sweat of their brows. 
The least this Congress can do is support their efforts wholeheartedly 
with a strong thoughtful 2023 farm bill and related legislation. The 
future of America depends on it.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

                          ____________________