Sen. Chuck Hagel said Thursday he believes the Senate has a responsibility to craft a new farm bill rather than extend the current program or accept the House plan.
the Lincoln Journal Star | Posted: Wednesday, October 3, 2007 7:00 pm
Sen. Chuck Hagel said Thursday he believes the Senate has a responsibility to craft a new farm bill rather than extend the current program or accept the House plan.
“I hope we do our job (by producing) a viable, responsible, relevant farm bill,” Hagel told his weekly telephone news conference.
Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Tom Harkin, D-Ia., recently said the Senate could adopt a long-term extension of the current program or accept the bill that already has passed the House.
Harkin said he’d prefer to draft a new bill.
“We still have time,” Hagel said, “but we’ve got to get at it.”
The Senate seems “unable to address the important issues of our time,” the Nebraska Republican said. “We dilly and dally and sleepwalk through these times.”