Between Feb. 1 and March 30, 40 states will have primaries and caucuses that will cull the herd of candidates for president and congressional races. Those running for president will run as long as supporters fund their campaigns.
There is always personal value to candidates being on the national stage. They see it as a resume-building experience for greater opportunities in either the public or private sectors. That’s why they hang on until the money runs out. As happened in the 2008 campaign, a primary opponent could ultimately become a member of the president’s cabinet.
On the Democratic side, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has a lock on the nomination, but the one thing that can derail her is the FBI investigation on her emails. Should that occur, the party would have to turn to Vice President Joe Biden as the only viable alternative late in the process. Democrats are typically supportive of farm policy and specifically sugar policy.
Sorting through the Republican presidential candidates is a bigger challenge. Donald Trump has celebrity status and is experienced and navigates well in the entertainment (Los Angeles), financial (New York) and political (Washington) worlds. He passionately expresses what many people think, but often in the most abrasive ways that tarnish the Republican “brand,” but he is getting huge publicity for the Trump “brand.” His harsh personal attacks on other Republican candidates is not helpful long term. Trump will remain a key factor in the months ahead regardless if he exits in April.
Ben Carson is a great success story but ultimately does not have the depth of knowledge or experience to be ready for the oval office. As I write this in late November, the real battle seems to be coalescing around Senators Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz. I think this is the real battle to watch for now. Both are razor sharp debaters and great campaigners with the ability to raise money. Cruz attracts the far right conservatives and evangelicals. In a November debate, Cruz went after Rubio for his support of sugar policy. Cruz noted that by getting rid of sugar “subsidies” the funds could be used to fund the military. The following week 18 beet and cane leaders from 15 states sent a letter to Cruz explaining that sugar policy runs at “no cost” to the taxpayer, except in a year that we suffered dumped sugar from Mexico (which has now been fixed). It is clear he is no friend of many farm policies, and we have made it clear that the road to the White House cannot be successful by running over the backs of the America farmer. We always want to educate members of Congress who are open to being educated about our issue to protect themselves from making statements that make them appear ignorant of our issue or purposefully misleading the voters for political gain. Thus far, Cruz has, unfortunately, no desire to meet with us.
Rubio has defended sugar policy on the national stage and has said he would get rid of it when other countries eliminate their subsidies—which is exactly where the domestic industry stands. The other key factor is that the Republicans must get 40 to 60 percent of the Latino vote in order to win the White House. Rubio can give a speech in Spanish as well as he can in English, and his Spartan economic upbringing and financial struggles helps others feel that he can relate to their economic struggles.
The campaign trail is long with many unforeseen twists and turns that no one can anticipate, which subjects those professionals who provide such insights to run the risk of either being prophetic or pathetic in their prognostications. My purpose is to share those insights to help you view the campaigns in a more informed light.
On the congressional front, we continue to meet with both incumbents and candidates to discuss the importance of our industry and policy. It is a process of clearly defining who we are, what we do and the benefits we bring to the nation. With a very active opposition to our policy, we have to be working every day to make sure our story is being told.
There is nothing more powerful and effective than meeting members of Congress or candidates face-to-face.
In each case they are looking to make the right decisions on policy and are looking for support for their re-election efforts. As we look to 2016, we can expect attacks on our sugar policy by our opponents through the appropriations process.
If Speaker Paul Ryan holds to having a more open legislative process under his leadership, it would mean more opportunities to attack our policy. Your contributions to your political action committee provide opportunities for us to have one-on-one time with members and their staff. Your support of your PAC causes candidates to seek us out and discuss our issues. This is the critical work that needs to be done and you expect it to be done. The defense of the current farm bill is happening right now. The preparation for the next farm bill, which will be more difficult than the last farm bill, is happening right now. Your support for your PAC is critically important right now.
Snyder’s new role
A huge thank you to ASGA President John Snyder for his two years of tremendous leadership and service to every grower in the U.S. John has given generously of his time and talent working on solving the Mexican trade problem, defending biotechnology and multiple other issues our organization has faced during his term as president. He is highly respected by the other leaders in our industry and by other commodity leaders.
John has also accepted to take over the responsibility from Ray VanDriessche as the grower representative on the Mexican task force to oversee the administration of the suspension agreements to make sure any issues between our two nations are avoided or resolved to make sure the sugar industries in both countries have a strong relationship in the years ahead. We thank Ray for his many years of dedicated service on behalf of all growers in the U.S. on the trade issues with Mexico.
2016 Agenda
The ASGA will be focused on defending the sugar provisions, making sure the suspension agreements with Mexico are defended and working properly. It will also be engaged in the U.S.-EU free trade agreement negotiation, working on biotech labeling issues and biotech education efforts, defending crop protection products and a host of other issues.
2016 ASGA Internship
A reminder that intern applications for 2016 are available on our website. This is a tremendous opportunity for a college student to spend eight weeks with us that will truly be an experience that will help them in the years ahead. Applications are due by March 31.