Lawmakers wisely act to help farmers hard-hit by drought
Wednesday, December 19th, 2007
By Chris Fitzsimon
The U.S. House did what it could to relieve the drought situation in North Carolina earlier this week.
A spending measure included in a massive omnibus spending package passed by that body includes relief for Tar Heel farmers hit hard by the drought.
But if Mother Nature doesn’t step up to the plate and open the spigot, no amount of cash is going to get us out of this mess. Simply put, it’s going to take rain.
Of course, you can’t plan on rain, so you have to have to have contingencies. Thankfully, it appears leaders across the Southeast and in Washington have received that message loud and clear.
The huge spending bill the House sent to the Senate that includes the drought relief appeared likely to make it across President Bush’s desk, provided it included enough funding for another dry area: Iraq. The measure is a 1,500-page catchall that funds 14 Cabinet agencies and most certainly includes some questionable spending. However, it also includes, as 2nd District Rep. Bob Etheridge, D-Lillington, told the New York Times, “… things that people have been waiting for. My farmers are hurting.”
Gov. Mike Easley made the drought a priority in late October when he called on state residents to drastically cut water consumption. While the public’s attention has wandered to other things in the busy holiday season, the situation is still dire. more…
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