Myths and Realities of the Vermont Economy II: Agriculture

According to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, in 2009 the agriculture sector contributed $282 million to the state’s $25 billion GDP–slightly more than 1% of the total.

via Vermont Tiger

You would never know that this is the case if you only ever listened to the politicians.

 

Sanders Predicts Agricultural Armageddon

Here is a video of Bernie Sanders (hold your guffaws) bloviating on the Senate floor about rural dairy farmers on the verge of collapse.  Listen to the first minute (if you can) and you’ll get a flavor of the man and his mission.

Bernie Sanders on the floor of the U.S. Senate

If you can’t bear to watch, here is a transcript of the first minute of the video:

I wanted to take a few  minutes right now to touch on an issue that in fact has not gotten a lot of discussion here in Congress and that is that family based dairy agriculture is on the verge of collapse.  This is not a regional issue this is a national issue.  From the east coast to the west coast what we are seeing is prices plummeting for dairy farmers way below the cost of production and if congress does not act all over America rural communities are going to be suffering  economically, people are going to be losing their jobs, and the American people increasingly will not be able to obtain fresh locally produced food.  And as we talk about stimulus; as we talk about trying to revive this economy lets remember rural America and lets remember the dairy farmers throughout this country who are producing an important part of the food we consume.

Later on, Sanders talks about how people don’t want to get their food from China* (I haven’t checked, are there any Chinese food products in the American market?).  I’ll stay focused on one point that he emphasizes in the video above: If Congress does not act.  Sanders, an avowed socialist, is nothing if not honest about who he is and what he believes in.  He believes sincerely (I think) that they only way to solve the problem of milk prices is for the United States Congress to do something about it.

His amendment (SA 2276) to the agricultural appropriations bill (H.R. 2997) allocates an additional $350 million to help raise prices paid to dairy farmers.  Compared to the billions being thrown around in Congress, $350 million is a drop in the bucket, but the thought process behind it is still dangerous (and costly – a million dollars  is still a million dollars no matter how small it may seem to someone of Sander’s position and influence).  To think that he can, with a stroke of the legislative pen, alleviate the plight of thousands of farmers around the country and that this is merely a step to solving the problem of price fluctuations is ridiculous.

The money will do little to nothing to save the family farms.  Which is precisely what works well with his agenda.  When farmers continue to go bankrupt Sanders has room to maneuver and claim that what Congress did before was inadequate and now they must do something more.  Ultimately, his vision would be one where the bureaucrats close to the Capitol would masterfully orchestrate the entire dairy industry (along with the auto industry, the banking industry, etc.).

There is always hope that the voters of Vermont will realize that what Sanders wants for the country is not in keeping with their right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.  Because Vermont seems to attract liberals and repel conservatives, my hope may not be the same kind prophesied by Barack Obama, but it is hope nonetheless.

*I find Bernie’s obsession with China quixotic.  On one hand, the Chinese espouse and practice the socialist/communist ideals that Bernie cherishes.  On the other hand, he consistently vilifies them for flooding our markets with cheap goods.  Similarly, he heralds the cause of the working class citizens of America, but seems to have no respect for the working class citizens of China (or other countries for that matter).