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The latest on the Key Bridge collapse, New York puts forth legislation to get clean energy projects on the grid and Wisconsin and other states join a federal summer food program to help feed kids across the country.

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Republicans float conspiracy theories on the collapse of Baltimore's Key Bridge, South Carolina's congressional elections will use a map ruled unconstitutional, and the Senate schedules an impeachment trial for Homeland Secretary Mayorkas.

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Bush Vetoes Farm Bill, House Overrides

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Thursday, May 22, 2008   

St. Paul-Minneapolis, MN - President Bush, as expected, vetoed the five-year, $300 billion farm bill Wednesday, calling it too expensive. Hours later, the House overrode the veto, with a Senate vote expected as early as today.

Reaction to the veto varies. Mark Schultz with the Minnesota-based Land Stewardship Project feels the bill, while not perfect, moves U.S. food and farm policy forward.

"It includes important building blocks for a more just, sustainable U.S. food and farm policy. It doesn't include the big reforms we need to keep working for regarding commodity programs and corporate concentration, but does have really important building blocks on conservation, beginning farmers, and local and regional food systems."

Schultz expects the Senate to override the veto.

Llewellyn Hille, a Minnesota field organizer with the international relief and development organization Oxfam, says he hopes the Senate sustains the veto, because the bill has some big gaps, such as policies that impede trade, and the continuation of subsidies for big producers.

"We would hope that Congress could, even at this late hour, stop and reconsider those payments that are made on the basis of crop production; particularly, the payment limitations, and some of those payments we call trade-distorting subsidies that influence farmers' planting practices."

Hille says that also brings us into conflict with our international trading partners and hurts farm exports. He says Congress should re-open the bill and rework the commodities policy.

Doug Peterson, president of the Minnesota Farmers Union, says the measure includes items of importance to producers, including permanent disaster relief and country-of-origin food labeling. But, he adds, there's a more important reason it needs to become law now.

"The first thing I think about is the need for nutrition and good, sound food policy in this country. The people that need Meals on Wheels, school lunch programs, the Women and Infant Children programs; addressing their needs makes up 73 percent of this bill."

Clouding the issue is the fact that the bill sent to the President was missing a 34-page section, so Bush vetoed a different bill than was approved by Congress.




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