Barack Obama (D)

Barack Obama (D)

Address:
PO Box 8102
Chicago, IL 60680

Click Here to download the responses received from Sen. Obama.

Farm Bill and Safety Net
I support a robust safety net that targets assistance appropriately and provides farmers with risk mitigation tools that protect them from weather and market conditions that are beyond their control. This includes traditional farm programs, crop insurance, and disaster assistance. I supported the 2008 Farm Bill and both the bill’s Permanent Disaster Program and ad hoc disaster assistance when farmers in Illinois and around the country have needed it. I am pleased to see that the final version of the Farm Bill contains a new revenue counter-cyclical program, the Average Crop Revenue Program (ACRE), which was developed with the National Corn Growers. This program should provide farmers with new tools to mitigate risk, and I hope that the U.S. Department of Agriculture implements it in keeping with the intent of Congress, so that it works for farmers.

Ethanol/Renewable Energy
I am a strong supporter of efforts to reduce our dependence on foreign oil by promoting the development of renewable energy, including biofuels, solar, and wind energy. Farmers are on the cutting edge of America’s path to energy independence. We are already replacing millions of barrels of imported oil thanks to our successful biofuels program, and I recently established a goal to have 60 billion gallons of our fuel come from biofuels by 2022. I am a proud supporter of the Renewable Fuels Standard and tax incentives for biofuels. I’ll invest $150 billion over the next ten years in our green energy sector, enhancing farmer profitability, injecting capital into rural economies, and creating up to 5 million new jobs in the process – jobs that pay well and can’t be outsourced.

Taxes
I have a comprehensive plan that would provide a tax cut for 95% of working Americans and simplify the tax code. I support a reasonable estate tax policy that would exempt all estates under $7 million per couple, effectively repealing the tax for 99.7% of estates. For the remaining 0.3% of estates that have more than $7 million per couple, I will retain a rate of 45%. This policy would cut the number of estates touched by the tax by 84 percent relative to 2000. My plan for capital gains is to maintain the current rate for families with incomes below $250,000. Those in the top two income brackets would pay a new rate of 20%, which is equal to the lowest rate that existed in the 1990s and the rate that President Bush proposed in 2001.

Infrastructure
One of the hurdles farmers and those in rural America face is the creation of a modern transportation system. As president, I will increase funding so that we can upgrade and maintain our waterways as they are a vital component of our rural infrastructure and enhance the competitiveness of our homegrown products. As your members know, I have long supported infrastructure projects that will support our nation’s farmers and strengthen our economy. I joined with you to push for the passage for the Water Resources Development Act, which authorized major upgrades to our waterways infrastructure, including the Upper Mississippi River and Illinois Waterway System, and I will work to provide the funding necessary to advance these new projects. I will also invest in rural communities by improving rural transportation infrastructure, increasing the availability of high-speed internet access and cell phone service.
As part of my emergency economic plan, I have called for the creation of a $25 billion Jobs and Growth Fund, which will partially be used to replenish the Highway Trust Fund so that our important infrastructure projects continue to receive adequate funding.
My administration will also create a new independent, expert-run National Infrastructure Reinvestment Bank to invest $60 billion in additional direct federal funding over 10 years into our transportation infrastructure. This Bank will use this $60 billion to leverage private and public capital to spur even more investments beyond today’s funding into our infrastructure.

Trade
Trade is vital to our agriculture sector. About 50 percent of the wheat, 20 percent of the corn, and 35 percent of the soybeans we grow in the United States are exported. These markets increase demand for our homegrown products and provide American farmers with additional revenue. Our farmers are among the most efficient in the world, and if given a level playing field, can compete effectively with anyone in the world.
There are several steps we must take to remain competitive and expand our access to markets. I support providing full funding to vital market promotion programs that enhance our access to important international markets. I have fought to break down trade and investment barriers that restrict our access to markets and will continue to do so. I supported bipartisan efforts to lift Korea’s and Japan’s bans on American beef.
It’s also important that we ensure that our trade agreements create a level playing field for American businesses and workers, and that our farmers and businesses secure robust market access as a result of these agreements. Trade agreements must contain strong and enforceable labor and environmental standards so that American farmers are able to compete on a level playing field. I will also continue to support providing resources to research and technology that enhances the productivity and profitability of our farmers.

Environmental Regulation
As president, I will support balanced policies to encourage responsible stewardship of our natural treasures and reverse the Bush administration’s attempts to chip away at our nation’s clean air and water standards.
Under an Obama administration, we will make it a priority to bring stakeholders to the table when important public policy decisions impacting agriculture are considered, whether it is at the USDA or EPA. In addition, I will restore the basic principle that government decisions should be based on the best available, scientifically-valid evidence and not on the ideological predispositions of agency officials or political appointees. More broadly, I am committed to providing Americans with the tools to participate in their democracy using cutting-edge technologies to provide a new level of transparency, accountability, and participation for America’s citizens. And finally, aside from the best available science, my administration will take into consideration the economic consequences of our decisions.

The following was submitted to the National Corn Growers Association from Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill.

Senator Barack Obama
September 19, 2008

Over the past eighteen months, I’ve seen the best of America in rural communities all across this country. I’ve seen hard work and innovation. I’ve seen rugged independence joined with a belief in community that says in America, we rise and fall together.

But what I’ve also seen is that rural America is struggling. Our economy is in turmoil. Families in the heartland are being squeezed by the rising cost of health care and energy and wages that aren’t keeping pace. And more and more farmers are worrying because even though some commodity prices are higher, input costs are higher as well.

This isn’t just a string of bad luck. The truth is, while you’ve been living up to your responsibilities, Washington has not. And at this defining moment, when the stakes could not be higher, rural America needs change.

My opponent, Senator McCain, has suddenly started saying he’ll bring about that change. But it didn’t help farmers when he opposed the 2008 Farm Bill and supported George Bush’s veto. I was proud to support the Farm Bill and its Average Crop Revenue Election (ACRE) Program that gives farmers and corn growers everywhere a hand. It wasn’t perfect legislation, and as President, I’ll pursue further reforms – but I won’t turn my back on legislation that works for rural America.

This election is our chance to bring about the change our farms and rural areas so desperately need. I’m proud of my record on rural issues in Illinois. Now it’s time you had a President who understands that when we strengthen our rural communities, we lift up our entire nation.
That’s why I’ve developed a comprehensive rural agenda based on conversations with farmers and families across our nation’s heartland. My plan will drive down the cost of health care, provide middle class families with a tax break, ensure that farmers have a robust safety net, and invest in critical rural infrastructure like schools and hospitals. That’s the change we need.

We’ll begin by breaking our addiction to foreign oil. Farmers feel the effects of our energy crisis firsthand. Rural communities are on the cutting edge of efforts to end it, and it’s time Washington stepped up to help. My comprehensive energy plan will end our dependence on Middle East oil within ten years. It will provide immediate relief to families facing pain at the pump, produce 60 billion gallons of biofuels, and create entire new industries with five million new jobs that pay well and can’t be outsourced.

We’ll invest in clean, home-grown renewable energy like wind, solar and biofuels. In the Senate, I was proud to support the establishment of the Renewable Fuel Standard. Advances in biofuels are some of the most exciting developments in agriculture in decades, and it’s responsible for injecting capital into rural economies and creating thousands of good jobs in rural communities.

John McCain, however, has voted against biofuels and renewable fuel mandates again and again. He even said that ethanol “has absolutely, under no circumstances, any value whatsoever.” That philosophy won’t help America’s farmers, and it won’t help end the energy crisis in this country.

To lift up our rural communities and diversify their economies, I’ll improve rural education, keep rural hospitals open and recruit a new generation of doctors to rural areas, and connect homes, businesses, and hospitals to modern broadband Internet infrastructure.

To encourage young people to become farmers, I’ll provide tax incentives that make it easier for new farmers to afford their first farm. And because farmers shouldn’t have to worry about droughts and weather-related disasters like floods putting them out of business, I’ll make sure they get quick relief when disaster strikes. That’s what I’ve always done for Illinois farmers, and that’s what I’ll do as President.
But if we’re serious about fighting for our farmers, we have to fight for our families and communities. That’s why I’ve proposed a middle class tax cut that saves 95% of working families $1,000 a year and eliminates income taxes entirely for seniors making less than $50,000. And because the crushing costs of health care shouldn’t shut down the farm, my health care plan doesn’t just cover every American who wants it, it cuts premiums for every family by up to $2,500 per year.

It’s time to make the rural agenda America’s agenda. It’s time you had a partner in the White House who fights for farmers and rural communities. That’s the kind of leadership you deserve – and if you stand with me in November, that’s the kind of leadership I will offer as President.