Agriculture & Food Safety (June 2010)

Almost two years ago, it became obvious Congress would need to apply more regulation to large Wall Street firms, including their use of derivatives. Unfortunately, the opportunity to regulate businesses that had nothing to do with the financial meltdown was just too tempting for Congress, and now we find ourselves with a bill that regulates American businesses as if they were all large risky financial institutions. These businesses, which use derivatives to responsibly manage risks, should not be treated the same as large financial institutions.

When the Pigford v. Glickman Consent Decree was finalized in 1999, we thought the roads would finally be opened for African-American farmers to receive compensation for the injustices suffered at the hand of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

In my first year and a half as the United States Secretary of Agriculture I’ve had the privilege to travel to nearly 40 states, visiting with Americans in communities of all types and sizes, from Ludowici, Georgia – population 1,500 – to large cities across the country.

During a Senate Commerce Committee hearing on Toyota safety issues, I asked rhetorically what Japan would do if we treated their automobile exports the same way they treated our beef exports.  This was in the wake of the numerous reports of safety issues with Toyotas.  My point was not to suggest that we should ban Toyotas or any cars from Japan, but rather to highlight the unfair manner in which Japan has treated U.S. beef exports.