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The Farm Bill passed in the House today (and Randy Kuhl voted “yes”). Some say this Bill has something for everyone, but Bush sees it as “giving money away to rich farmers.” Yes, I know that there are lots of mega-corporate farms out there, but seeing “rich” and “farmers” in the same sentence, seems to me an oxymoron.

The 318-to-106 vote, far over the two-thirds needed to override a veto, sends the bill to the Senate, where the measure is also expected to have veto-proof support. Although predictions can be dicey in political Washington, the measure’s strength in the Senate has been seen as even more robust than in the House.

The House result, with 100 Republicans joining 218 Democrats to vote for the bill, made good on the predictions of the bill’s chief shepherd, Representative Collin Peterson, a Minnesota Democrat who heads the House Agriculture Committee.

This will be the second time that a veto-proof vote has gone down for Mr. Bush. The first was a water projects measure on which the Senate over-rode his veto.

This is the effect that the Farm bill will have on upstate NY:

Senator Schumer said: “This farm bill is one of the best things to happen to Northeast agriculture in a very long time. Our two biggest products–dairy, and fruits and vegetables–take giant steps forward under its provisions.

[snip]

Besides providing important support for dairy farmers, the Farm Bill also helps fruit and vegetable farmers by including about 3.5 billion in new money for specialty crops programs. In addition, the Bill includes block grants to states, conservation programs, disaster relief funding, programs to combat pests and disease, including invasives like PPV, and funding for the Tree Assistance Program. The Bill also contains new programs to assist organic farmers, provide funding for organic farming research, and help conventional farms that desire to transition to organic farming.