that's billion with a B...

as most of you know, i grew up in a farming community. my folks still live there, i own land there, and it has profoundly influenced the person i have come to be.

so it is with great interest that i have been following the 2007 iteration of the farm bill. in case you're unfamiliar, the farm bill is a ginormous piece of legislation that dictates policy on a million different things including WIC and food stamps, subsidies, conservation programs, and (at least in the bill that congress is about to send to the president), tax breaks for the depreciation of racehorses.

this whole thing keeps getting more and more interesting. it looks like the farm bill will be placed in front of the president in the next couple of weeks, at which point he will promptly issue a veto.

the washington post has done some really great reporting on this. most recently:

* Negotiators Agree on Farm Bill, but Bush Vows to Veto It
* Plow It Under: A farm bill larded with giveaways deserves President Bush's veto.

in addition, here's a good summary of the latest goings on from grist.

and by chasing the link trail, i found these two websites. they're really good.

* blog for rural america

* mulch

by my own admission, i realize these points of view only represent one side of the issue. and obviously there are many sides, or this thing wouldn't have been locked in legistlation for as long as it has.

i went over to bread for the world's website to see if they had offered any kind of response. i would say they give it a half thumbs up. they are pleased with the increases in nutrition assistance programs (2/3 of the farm bill's $300 billion (that's with a B) is allocated to nutrition programs - including WIC and food stamps). but they, too, see it as a major missed opportunity for congress to make substantial change to current farm bill business as usual.

so, we'll see where this goes from here. if nothing else, it promises to further illuminate the tenuous relationship that congress shares with the administration.