AGRIBUSINESS: Secretary of Ag Challenges Rural America

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack told farm belt leaders last week, he is frustrated with rural America’s – self damaging squabbles – adding – they need to be more strategic in picking their political fights. He said – it’s time for us to have an adult conversation with folks in rural America. It’s time for a different thought process.

The Secretary said we need to recognize that as rural America continues to shrink in population – it is becoming less and less relevant to the politics of this country, and we had better recognize that and we better begin to reverse it. He pointed to the fact that – for the first time in recent memory, farm-state lawmakers were not able to push a farm bill through Congress in an election year, evidence of lost clout in farm states.