Virginia’s eight Republican members of the U.S. House voted in favor of a revised version of the farm bill today. The new $195 billion measure, which was rushed to the House floor less than a day after introduction, won approval on a 216-to-208 vote.
Half of the Virginia delegation — Reps. Robert Goodlatte (VA-6), Scott Rigell (VA-2), Robert Hurt (VA-5) and Frank Wolf (VA-10) — bucked Republican leadership last month to send the bill to a surprising defeat.
The new version of the farm-only farm bill, reportedly spearheaded by House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (VA-7), strips all food-stamp spending from the legislation, leaving that for consideration another day. However, the new 608-page bill still includes costly agriculture subsidies, market-distorting farm programs and special-interest handouts. It fails to make a single reform from the version that was defeated in June — and is actually worse.
With all Democrats opposed, Republicans managed to win back most of the party’s 62 skeptics who voted against the measure in June. Twelve Republicans voted against the bill today.
Cantor issued a celebratory statement after the bill’s passage: “This is a victory for farmers and conservatives who desired desperately needed reforms to these programs.” Politico reported yesterday that Cantor “had a major role in the collapse of the farm bill last month and hopes to recover now by dividing the package into two parts to appease conservatives.”
Agriculture policy expert Daren Bakst, my colleague at The Heritage Foundation, said Republicans “wasted the golden opportunity that separation could have provided: the ability to promote policies that benefit taxpayers, farmers, and consumers in a fiscally responsible way.”
The new measure spends more money than what President Obama requested on the largest farm program, crop insurance. It also imposes a new tax on Christmas trees, something even Senate Democrats didn’t attempt to do.
House Republicans unnecessarily rushed consideration of the bill today, waiving the three-day waiting period spelled out in the GOP’s “Pledge to America” and enshrined in House rules. Members did not have an opportunity to offer amendments or properly review the bill. This does not live up to the spirit of transparency.
How unfortunate for Virginia taxpayers.
