Family Farmers Back Oberstar by Congressman James L. Oberstar Appearing in Press Release on 2006-11-01. Duluth – Congressman Jim Oberstar is responding to criticism that he has not done enough for Minnesota farmers. "Rod’s campaign is way off base again," said Oberstar. "I have been endorsed by the Minnesota Farmers Union, which means the backing of 26,000 family farmers." On Tuesday, Grams' campaign manager issued a press release attacking Oberstar’s record on agriculture. "It was such a weak argument that Rod was afraid to make it himself," said Oberstar. Rep. Collin Peterson is the ranking Democrat on the House Agriculture Committee and stands to gain the chairmanship of that committee if the Democrats take control of the House next Tuesday. Peterson says he and Oberstar make a great team working for Minnesota farmers. "Jim Oberstar has an excellent record protecting and promoting the interests of Minnesota's farmers and anyone who says otherwise doesn’t know what he’s talking about," said Peterson. "Jim has pushed for increased rail capacity and improvements to the lock and dam system that help farmers transport their commodities to the marketplace. In a Congress where the Democrats are the majority, Jim and I would work together to write and pass a new Farm Bill that protects current programs that work, increases opportunities for rural development and conservation, and adds a new energy title to promote biofuels and alternative energy sources. Together, Jim and I will do all we can to see that Minnesota's farmers have the agricultural programs and transportation system support they need to continue making their vital contribution to our economy," Peterson continued. Grams record on helping Minnesota farmers has been lacking. Grams supported trade deals like NAFTA and GATT, which have caused commodity prices to drop damaging family farmers. He supported the Republican Freedom to Farm Act, which eliminated many programs that help farmers when commodity prices drop. Many family farmers have called this bill the "freedom to fail at farming act." Grams maintained strong support for the Freedom to Farm Act of 1996. He was so convinced in the benefits of his bill that he said only "dumb farmers" have to fear the Freedom to Farm Act (AP, 7/15/98) In an editorial in the Fargo Forum in 2000, John Sundvor said of Grams, "He is a laissez faire Republican, who thinks Freedom to Farm is sound federal farm policy that merely needs a little tweaking. He is convinced farmers across the state are going broke only because they do not have enough access to global markets. It is an absurd view that fails to recognize that farmers have no control over commodity prices. They are the victims of a marketing system that rewards the big and powerful." (Fargo Forum, 7/9/00) Grams has also voted to shortchange many programs that were designed to help family farms during times of financial crisis. You can learn more about Rod Grams voting record by following this link: http://www.oberstar.org/gramsfacts5.html. ###

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