Shaking Hands

After spending a day in a meeting with state communicators, I joined up with my board and loaded up in a cab bound for Georgetown. Our group from Texas joined several corn folks from Minnesota, all with lovely northerner accents. We were also joined by Tom Sell and Jeff Harrison of the Southwest Council of Agribusiness - an organization representing many agricultural organizations, businesses and individuals in West Texas. The SWCA is headed by a lobbying group called Combest, Sell & Associates, which is stationed out of Lubbock and DC. Larry Combest was a major player in the last farm bill and was the chairman of the House Ag Committee during that time. Obviously, a good friend of West Texas agriculture. So, anyway, we had reservations for our group of about 40 people at a French restaurant in Georgetown. This was my first ever French eating experience, and I must say it was wonderful. (I wish I could've said something to comment about the place in French, but I don't know any French.)

We dined with French wine, escargot, chilean sea bass and apple tarts for dessert. I had a lovely conversation with a gentlemen who is a trade lawyer. His wife, coincidentally, is from Harrison, Ark. He was a major Auburn Tiger fan so we educated those at the table, including many Minnesota dudes, about the intensity and passion for SEC football in the South. For some reason, announcing I'm from Arkansas usually presents an opportunity to tell cool family Civil War stories that are always a crowd pleaser.

Another attendee of the French dinner, was a prominent writer for a daily Hill newspaper that describes what will be discussed that day on the Senate and House floors. He stood up, and because of the SWCA's association with Lubbock, made comments on the town and his desire to visit the Buddy Holly museum. It was at that time, he pulled out his very own Buddy Holly style sunglasses. Suddenly, even in Washington, connections to Lubbock, Texas seemed to had their benefits.

He also extended great interest in knowing the voting plans of each person in the room. Let me remind you that the people in this room consisted of Texas and Minnesota corn farmers. So, with a little discomfort, each person in the room voiced their choice for the 2008 presidential election. I bet over half said either "undecided" or "I will not vote this year because I don't like either candidate." Luckily, for some reason, no one asked me.

Now, since this is my very own blog, I feel like I can voice my opinions without feeling a journalistic responsibility to be fair and unbiased. However, there's still a slight sense of that journalistic responsibility that has been instilled in me that will prohibit me from being completely revealing in my political beliefs...mainly because I'm not even sure if I've figured them out just yet.

Senator McCain has openly voiced (probably more so than just about anyone in recent history) that he is against farm programs and openly declared he would veto a farm bill in the future. His distaste for agriculture should scare the pants off of all of you. If you want to continue living in a country that promotes a safe, abundant food supply, then you would be crazy to vote for this man. His views on agriculture should be a slap in the face to anyone who wakes up every morning and feeds cattle, plants corn, harvests wheat, or anything that has to do with the American family farm. I really don't care if you're a Republican or a Democrat. That is not the issue.

Then on the other hand, although Obama has openly pronounced support for alternative energy programs, such as the ethanol mandates that I go to battle for every day, his religious background scares the pants off of me.

So, what do we as rural, hard-working American's do? I can't vote for McCain because of his views on agriculture. They're poisonous to all of us. I don't really care what his views on gun control or yada yada are. Without agricultural support, we as a nation will lose all of our ag markets to foreign countries...humm, sound familiar? How is that $4 gas treating you right now?

OK, sorry. I got off on a political rant. Blame it on the city I am in. It comes with the territory. I just really can't stand it when people rave about a certain political party without knowing a flippin' reason why they have those views. Perhaps it's because grandpa told that to them once, and they've always been too lazy to figure it out on their own? Dang it! There I go again...

So, anyway, this morning (Wednesday) Corn Congress officially began and so did visits to the the congressional delegation of each corn state.

During Corn Congress, delegates from each state voted on amendments to NCGA policy, elected new board members, and some other stuff that I missed because I was calling the gas company in Arkansas about a leak. Senator Sherrod Brown of Ohio spoke while I was solving my gas woes back home, however, I did coincidentally run into him on the stairs. I was headed back into Corn Congress, and he noted my nametag, saying, "Oh, Lubbock, Texas! I ate breakfast with some gentlemen from Lubbock, Texas this morning."

And you want to know what my response was? I actually had gum in my mouth like some high school teeny bopper. I never chew gum, but my lack of breakfast was killing me, so I had to occupy myself with something. I noticed the sudden, unexpected attention from the senator who was making his way up the stairs, and tried to hide the gum in the corner of my mouth like it wasn't there. Remember, I NEVER chew gum. Oh, the irony.

I responded, "Yeah, we're everywhere."

Good one. At least his staffers laughed.

We then had our luncheon, and today's speaker was Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa, who has been a very outspoken advocate of ethanol. Sen. Grassley has also been instrumental in helping our campaign in denouncing all myths about ethanol being responsible for rising food prices. The facts tell us otherwise folks. It's just wrong and it's just what the oil dudes want you to believe.


After lunch, I went along with three of our board members to the Hill to do some visits with our Texas congressional delegation. The neat thing about these guys is they are just like you and me - they're farmers. Yet, these guys are so well-versed in farm policy and how it affects not only their operations, but the operations of corn, and other commodity growers in Texas. It just reiterates my thoughts on, "Don't gripe about something until you know both sides, understand the issue, and can form a well-educated opinion about it, and then take action."

We visited with Congressmen John Carter, a staffer of the House Ag Committee, and the new ag legislative assistant (LA) for Congressman Randy Neugebauer of the 19th district of Texas (aka, the congressmen representing the Lubbock area and a large part of West Texas). A House vote was taking place at this time, but we happened to meet the Congressmen in the tunnel beneath Capitol Hill on his way to the House floor. He greeted his active corn constituents and hurried along to his civic duty.

We also met with the ag LA for Congressmen Henry Cuellar, a staffer for Congressmen Chet Edwards, and Congressmen Mike Conaway himself.

The cool thing about seeing Conaway was that we actually toured beneath the bowels of the United States Capitol (thanks to his chief scheduler, Faith, who led us through security to the door outside of the House floor) to meet with the representative. Suddenly, we were right where things happen - in the Capitol, on the House side, amongst U.S. congressmen who, like Conaway, were meeting with constituents who had traveled to DC to voice their concerns about public policy.

Of all the congressmen that we spoke with today (and likely any that I have ever met) he is perhaps the most personable of all of them. He greeted all of us as if he was seeing faces from home, and spoke with my board members with a genuine concern for their issues. I'd like to post the whole picture of the congressmen and our board members, but I like my job, and I'd rather not.

While I can't obviously point out every senator or congressman by sight, you can pick them out in a crowd by their member lapel pin. Just being in the presence of so many members of congress is a really cool experience. I know I sound like a tourist with a fanny pack, but seriously folks, this is neat stuff.

After meeting with the congressman, we retreated to the Capitol Hill Club outside of the House side of the Hill. Conaway's staffer graciously led us through the winding tunnels beneath Capitol Hill to a point that put us right where we needed to come up to surface. We went inside, thanks to the membership of one of our corn board members who makes frequent visits to DC and who was a former NCGA president. This club is just outside of the House buildings and is a hot spot for congressmen and staff. In fact, we ran into one of our congressmen from our district who we were not able to meet with. He knelt next to my chair, visited with us, thanked us for our visit, then returned to his staffers, as I finished my Makers Mark and Diet Coke.

Our next stop for the day was a reception on the top floor of the Hart Senate building. Since I was hot and sweaty from a day of touring the Hill's men in my suit, I decided to go back to the hotel and meet up with my party after refreshing. I had worn blisters on my little toes from all the walking in my dress shoes. They were even flats...I know, all the cool girls on Capitol Hill wear heels, but I'm not tough enough. So, I had to stop and get some BandAids.

I took a cab back to Hart, met up with my crew, who was leaving this reception for another reception held for the House Ag Committee at the Longworth House building.

So, we went to that one. The House Ag Committee Chair, Colin Peterson, was there...and was playing lead vocals for his band the "Second Amendments".

Not only were we in the presence of some of our nation's most powerful agricultural decision makers, but were also in the House Ag Committee meeting room in the only balcony-equipped room on the House side.



The view was amazing, and the room was packed with corn folks, soybean folks, Farm Bureau folks and twenty-somethings. From the balcony was a view of the Capitol, while above you was an expansive ceiling with architecture you would compare to Rome. In fact, I ran into a guy I went to college with at the U of A. Small world.

And, yes, that is the same dress I wore to the wedding in San Angelo. Hello, people...I had to pack for almost two weeks! So, back off!

The place was rather crowded, and they ran out of "refreshments" so we left for the Dubliner, which was near our hotel.

The mere idea of shaking hands and being in the presence of these people today almost gave me the DC bug. I see how easy it can be to get caught up in the excitement and thrill of this city. I'm not talking about the touristy, 0h-let's-go-visit-the-monuments kind of experience, I'm talking about the "getting involved in your nation's policy" experience. Being someone. Knowing the right people. Obviously, the only reason I was in this position was because I was with people who knew how to play the game, and who had connections with the people on the Hill. Even though I was just the person keeping the guys on track as far as where the next place to go and who were were meeting with, and taking their picture once we got there...I was still there. And it was enough to almost infect me.

But, even in all of the DC mania, the rolling hills, flowing waters and sweet smell of Bermuda grass hay will still always be my Mecca. I guess that's what is cool about this whole process. The very gentlemen I was with today represent that very desire - while today they wore suits, ties and cuff lings, and voiced concerns about American agriculture to their congressional delegation - once they return to Texas, they will be wearing jeans, a John Deere cap and dusty boots as they board their tractors and harvesters. These men are may be what many would classify as simple-minded farmers, but I promise you they know more about agricultural policy and how this country's government is ran than you or I will ever know...that is unless we take the initiative as they have to learn the system and take and active interest in it, rather than complaining about how it doesn't work.

God bless America.