Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Iowa State Fair
This morning I made my annual trek to the world famous Iowa State Fair in Des Moines. Every August I look forward to walking around the fair grounds, meeting new people and even bumping into some old friends— you never know who you are going to run into while walking around. As an added bonus, I couldn’t have asked for better weather today.
When I first arrived at the fair, I stopped by the Partnership for Better Health’s booth. But this was a lot more than just a booth. They were offering free health screenings to fair goers which included blood pressure checks, along with cholesterol and glucose screenings. I have been a long time advocate of preventative medicine screenings. America spends more than any other nation, $2 trillion annually, on health care, yet many Americans suffer from preventable diseases. Taking these simple tests can save you lots of money on health care down the road. I want to thank the Farm Bureau and their partners for sponsoring this possibly life saving booth.
My next stop was KGGO’s live broadcast from the fair. I had a chance to chat with Heather in person, while Lou and the Round Guy were back in the studio. Heather and I had a good time discussing which rides we were going to brave this year, but I figured I would leave the rides up to her. We also talked about the high gas prices and Iowa’s role in producing clean, renewable energy to wean us off our addiction to oil from the Middle East. I always have a fun time talking with the folks at KGGO.
Over the noon hour, I made my annual visit to the Pork Producers Tent. After talking with Rich Degner, the Executive Director of the Iowa Pork Producers Association and a few local producers, for a couple of minutes, I made my way to the grill. There, Gregg Hora and I flipped some pork chops and pork burgers. Gregg is a member of the Pork Producers in Webster City. After my turn at the grill was done, my good friend, Mike Mauro, who is the Iowa Secretary of State, and I served water and tea to the tables of folks enjoying their lunch. It’s always fun chatting with people as they enjoy their Iowa chops.
Next up, I stopped by the WHO studio to talk with Ken Root about a host of recent agriculture news including USDA’s implementation of the new farm bill, the recent announcement about emergency haying and grazing in Iowa and the recent decision that denied the State of Texas’s request for a Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS) waiver. As Chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee, I am using my oversight responsibilities to ensure USDA is implementing the farm bill as Congress intended. Earlier this week, Senator Grassley and I led 23 senators in a letter to USDA asking that they maintain farm program payments for smaller farms as written into the farm bill. This letter came on the heels of complaints about USDA’s interpretation of a provision that would eliminate producers from receiving direct, counter cyclical, or ACRE payments, if the farm is 10 acres or less.
During the interview, I told Ken how pleased I was with the decision to open up Conservation Reserve Program lands for haying and grazing in Iowa communities impacted by disaster. This move will help our livestock producers during these trying times. We also talked about renewable energy and the recent RFS decision, which I hailed. The new farm bill aims to strike more a balance with ethanol production by increasing incentives for cellulosic ethanol. I am also working in Congress to remove a tax barrier that has prevented renewable sources of energy like ethanol from traveling across the country by pipeline.
My time at the fair ended in the cattle barn seeing this year’s "Super Bull" and meeting with Bruce Berven, the Executive Director of the Iowa Cattlemen’s Association. The 3,000 pound bull is housed right next to the where the Cattlemen have their booth set up. Bruce and I had a chance to talk about the recently passed farm bill that I ushered through the Senate.
Each year, as I travel through Iowa, I always look forward to stopping by the fair. It is no surprise that people come from near and far to sample the food, ride the rides and see all of the talents that are on display.
