Silent Administration Rankles Combest

September 10

House Agriculture Committee Chairman Larry Combest (R-TX) continues to press the Clinton Administration for specifics on farm relief. "I believe it's time for the administration to finally break its silence" on the issue, he says in a letter to Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman. Glickman hasn't replied to an invitation to appear before Combest's committee to review the crisis, he says.

Combest has been pressing the administration for the last several months to make a specific proposal for farm aid. The administration reportedly is considering just such a proposal but so far has made nothing public.

"This is not the first time the administration has been asked to roll up its sleeves and use its vast resources and personnel to help Congress prepare an emergency farm and ranch relief plan," says Combest. "The administration was put on notice five months ago that Congress would seek its help when a bipartisan group of senators met on May 5 to discuss farm relief options."

The letter continued, "Frankly, none of us in Congress or in the agriculture community has the resources, personnel or expertise that you have at your disposal to conduct a comprehensive assessment of the needs in farm country. At the end of the day, we in Congress and every farmer and rancher in this nation should be able to look to you."