Forum editorial: A farm bill veto would be mistake

Fargo Forum

The White House and U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Ed Schafer, who is a former farm state governor, find themselves at odds with Republicans and Democrats over the farm bill. It’s no surprise Democrats are criticizing the president and the secretary, but the intensity of Republican irritation should get their attention.

Whether one is a Republican or a Democrat, there is justification for anger over the administration’s conduct. Nearly every time conferees reached accommodation with White House demands, the administration moved the goal posts. Good-faith compromises were all but ignored and replaced by a veto threat. None of it sits well with senators and representatives who have been working overtime to craft a bill that is fiscally responsible and responsive to the needs of farmers and consumers.

Sen. Norm Coleman, R-Minn., probably summed it up best when he said this week after the president renewed a veto threat: “I’ve been very clear in saying that vetoing this farm bill would simply be a mistake and that the president would be wrong not to sign this bill.”