WASHINGTON D.C. — Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) is defending President Trump’s government efficiency cuts, including to USDA, but concedes ongoing issues where vital services to farmers and others need protection.
Thune’s fond of saying agriculture is the “lifeblood” of his native South Dakota. So why then when grocery prices are sky high, freeze USDA contracts, fire the bird flu responders, and stall U.S. overseas food aid? He says “the American people demanded in the election that we have a smaller, more limited, more efficient federal government that costs less and delivers the important services that they expect their government to deliver.”
But Thune insisted senators will “respond to the administration if they think there are things that need to be addressed.” He added that “it’s important that you don’t undermine important services. In many cases, as you point out, there are some that affect my state, and there are some that affect all of my colleagues’ states around the country. We will work with the administration as they move forward to ensure that important services that have to do with health and safety, for example, are protected and preserved.”
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer argued that’s not what’s happening…that the president and efficiency chief Elon Musk are taking a meat axe to the government. So, what more is Schumer doing?.
“One, communicating to the American people how bad this is so that they can communicate that to Republican senators who, thus far, seem to be going along with it,” said Schumer. “Two, legal. We’ve had a lot of success on the legal front. We’re working with the AGs. We’re working with other groups. The third is oversight. We have our portal for those whistleblowers who want to report things in. We’ve got thousands of examples. And we have strike forces that are going to hold hearings to point this up. And the fourth is legislation.”
Horror stories continue of USDA and other firings, re-hirings, and re-firings, even of those who signed promised buyouts to quit. USDA was trying to undo firings of bird flu responders after the move sparked widespread criticism. Sixteen ag state senators of both parties wrote new USDA chief Brooke Rollins calling for urgent action against bird flu, now the largest animal health outbreak in U.S. history that’s also sickening farm workers.
Story by Matt Kaye/Berns Bureau Washington; courtesy of NAFB News Service
