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Fight continues over cotton and dairy funding

Senate Ag Committee Ranking Member Debbie Stabenow has been under fire for allegedly blocking funding in the omnibus spending bill that would have assisted struggling cotton producers. Stabenow sought to link funds for cotton and dairy programs in any funding deal. But in the end, neither were funded.

Stabenow defends her actions, “It wasn’t okay to do an end run with one commodity without talking to everybody. We get things done when we work in a bi-partisan way and that’s how we’ll get things done, going forward, in the future.”

She says producers are struggling and assistance is needed for both commodities, “These are two areas, where two commodities, are expressing urgent need and we should do something to support both of them. That has been my position, will be my position, and was my position, when we were negotiating the budget and we proposed various options.”

The National Cotton Council accuses Stabenow and Vermont Senator Pat Leahy of “playing politics” and says there was no rationale for linking support between cotton and dairy producers. House Ag Committee Chairman Mike Conaway blames the Senators for blocking critical relief to cotton producers and called the $800 million plan that Leahy and Stabenow proposed “last minute, unvetted, and totally unpaid for”.