{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://web.archive.org/web/20131217114610/http://www.grassley.senate.gov/news/Article.cfm?customel_dataPageID_1502=47640", "Unfinished Business", "2013-12-02", "2013", "2013-12", "Republican", "House", "IA", "Charles Grassley", "G000386", "web.archive.org", null, null, "legacy", "During the tugs of war that crop up in Washington during political debates and policymaking, it\u2019s not surprising the act of legislating has often been compared to the art of sausage making.\u00a0 The give-and-take that has long characterized the legislative meat grinder on Capitol Hill has been put on the chopping block. Consider an analogy attributed long ago to George Washington. He compared the bicameral functions of the upper and lower chambers of Congress to a cooling saucer and hot coffee.\u00a0 America\u2019s first president suggested the Senate \u201ccools\u201d legislation passed by the more tumultuous House of Representatives. Skip ahead two centuries and regrettably, heated tempers were not allowed to cool in the deliberative senatorial saucer during a recent rule change in the U.S. Senate.\u00a0 Instead of cooling his heels, the Majority Leader booted the institutional traditions and decorum associated with the upper chamber of Congress.\u00a0 His cavalier power grab leaves a stain on the world\u2019s greatest deliberative governing body, weakening its tradition for civility and consensus. Despite the discouraging setback that meddles with the constitutional principles of the Senate\u2019s advice and consent authority, important legislative and oversight work continues\u00a0 as we near the end of the calendar year.\u00a0 Unfinished business includes the budget blueprint and the farm and food bill. Working under the shadow of a $17 trillion national debt, lawmakers need to come to grips with the fact that Washington cannot tax-and-spend its way to prosperity.\u00a0 As a member of the budget conference tasked with a Dec. 13 deadline, I want the committee to reach an agreement that will set spending parameters for the federal government through the next fiscal year.\u00a0 So far, big spenders keep trying to hammer a square peg into a round hole, hooked on a utopian mindset that Big Government can solve all our problems.\u00a0 Just look where that\u2019s gotten us:\u00a0 unsustainable spending, broken promises and a cynical American public. Washington also keeps kicking the can down the road on the farm and food bill. Rural America, the nation\u2019s food producers and the taxpaying public deserve better, long-term certainty than yet another short-term extension.\u00a0 This important piece of public policy sets into place farm and nutrition safety nets, conservation incentives and rural development programs.\u00a0 A big sticking point hinges on how much savings to extract from the food stamp program.\u00a0 All sides agree enrollment has soared.\u00a0 The expiring farm and food bill spent 80 percent of its budget on nutrition programs, including food stamps.\u00a0 In September, 15 percent of the population, or about 47 million Americans, received food stamp benefits. On the farm side of the spending ledger, I\u2019m championing payment caps that limit how much individual farmers may receive per year.\u00a0 I\u2019m also working to maintain support for closing a loophole that exploits the taxpaying public.\u00a0 Currently, general partnerships and joint ventures may qualify for farm payments using \u201cactive personal management\u201d guidelines that allow hundreds of millions of tax dollars to flow though this loophole.\u00a0 The provisions I authored would allow only one off-farm manager to address the abusive practice of multiple non-farming individuals receiving payments without having a significant role in farm management.\u00a0 It\u2019s time to put teeth into the law to keep our farm safety net defensible in an era that calls for serious belt-tightening across-the-board. If Congress fails to reach an agreement on the farm and food bill, consumers could experience serious sticker shock in January.\u00a0 Prices for milk could double if current commodity programs expire.\u00a0 That\u2019s because the underlying permanent farm law would trigger the U.S. Department of Agriculture to set the floor price for milk at about $39 per 100 pounds.\u00a0 Although I\u2019m not serving on the conference committee hammering out the details on a final bill, I\u2019m riding herd on lawmakers to keep the reforms in place that were in both the House- and Senate-passed bills.\u00a0 It\u2019s time to give farmers the certainty they need to make business decisions for the year ahead.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://web.archive.org/web/20131217114610/http://www.grassley.senate.gov/news/Article.cfm?customel_dataPageID_1502=47640"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.7933832239359617, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}