Democrats | Field 2 Field

June 23, 2020June 23, 2020

Honest talk from a non-Trump voter

Honest talk can get you in so much trouble these days, primarily because no one wants to hear it. I bet you knew right away I was referring to politics, right?

Politics is not my choice of prime topics to write about these days. It’s positively exhausting and you’re going to get a guaranteed argument just because you dared to criticize someone from the same political party as any potential reader that comes across your site. However, sometimes my curiosity gets the best of me. After all, you know what curiosity did to the cat, right?

I didn’t vote for either Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton in the last election. My attitude toward both political parties is less-than-trusting. I voted for the third-party candidate because I thought he was the most qualified, even though I knew he’d never win. Was that wasting my vote? Depends on who you ask, I guess. However, I held my head high leaving the polling location because I voted my conscience.

I wish more people would vote for the best candidates, rather than just check the “R” or “D” boxes behind each candidate’s name, regardless of the position they’re running for. Minnesota is awful at that. Go back in history to find out how long Democrats have had primary control of state government. It’s longer than you think.

But I digress. That’s not my main point here.

As a non-Trump voter, I’ve been marveling over the past four years at the level of hate for the guy, simply because he’s not a member of the political elite. I’m not a big fan of his, primarily because of the way he’s handled U.S. agriculture, which is something near and dear to my heart, over the past four years. However, when you look at American politics these days, something is standing out as a bigger problem than the guy in the Oval Office.

Democrats (and more than a few Republicans) will list off all the reasons the U.S. is in trouble because of the current president, and frankly, there are some things I’ll agree with. However, my question is how much trouble can one guy be when he’s been in office for four years compared to people who’ve been in power for multiple decades? Well, that got me wondering about the shysters who’ve been in Congress for a long time and how they can call Trump our biggest problem?

According to The Stacker Dot Com website (all of these numbers are from late last year, so you do the math from there), Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky has been in the Senate for almost 35 YEARS. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi has been in the House for just over 32 YEARS! Dianne Feinstein of California (boy, she appears to be quite honest and upfront, doesn’t she?) has been in office for just shy of 27 years. Heck, the 49^th-longest-tenured member of Congress is David Price, who represents North Carolina, and he’s been in office “only” 23 years.

Even more insane is the fact that the longest-tenured member of Congress is Republican Don Young. He’s been in office for almost HALF-A-CENTURY at 48 years. Republican Pat Leahy of Vermont has been in office 45 years!

Are we just lazy? That’s not a rhetorical question, either. I’m looking for an answer because people can’t seem to grasp the fallacy of sending the same people over and over into government. Have you ever heard the cliché “absolute power corrupts absolutely?” It’s a cliché for a reason. It’s true. More honest talk here; You cannot look at Washington, D.C. today and not see the corruption on BOTH sides of the aisle.

But I digress, again. My question is this; How on Earth can Trump be our biggest problem when these morons have been in office for DECADES and had a chance to show real leadership and fix at least SOME of the problems we are dealing with now? Do you honestly think that they’re going to fix our problems NOW, as opposed to decades ago when they took office? Why is right now any different from the last 20, 30, or even 40 years?

Surely you can see the dangers inherent in keeping the same people in power for long periods of time, right? Eventually, those people begin to expect it. If they don’t have to worry about being elected because we keep sending them to DC, do they REALLY work for us anymore?

Maybe we need to send some of these people who’ve spent all this time in Congress packing. Is it even remotely possible that when they’re yelling about Trump to the mainstream “media,” they’re trying to distract you from something else they don’t want you to know about? That’s a rhetorical question because it’s exactly what they’re doing.

These long-time “leaders” have had their shot. Politicians have been padding their pockets and sowing division in this country for decades. They throw money at problems instead of trying to actually do some good. Here’s some really honest talk; It’s past time for some new ideas and new blood.

November 14, 2019November 14, 2019

Dairy Industry is “Optimistic” at #NAFB19

Dairy industry officials know firsthand that the industry has struggled in recent years, and there’s no question about it. Former Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack, who spoke to broadcasters during the National Association of Farm Broadcasting’s annual convention in Kansas City. Vilsack, is the current President and CEO of the U.S. Dairy Export Council. He says in spite of some tough years for the American dairy industry, there are reasons for optimism.

News broke this week that Dean Foods, America’s largest milk producing company in the dairy industry, filed for bankruptcy. I had a chance for some one-on-one comments with the former Ag Secretary, who preferred to talk more about the positive signs ahead in the dairy industry than the bad news about Dean Foods.

He took a lot of questions from farm broadcasters on a variety of topics in the dairy industry. One of the biggest topics in recent months is the growing market for plant-based “milks.” He and the rest of the dairy industry aren’t happy with these companies referring to themselves as “milk.” The question came from Orien Samuelson, the dean of farm broadcasters and a good friend of Vilsack.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CbopKYObCAs&feature=youtu.be

He says the US-Mexico-Canada Trade Agreement making its way through the House of Representatives, all be it slowly because of Democratic concerns, is another reason to be optimistic. He’s confident that the agreement will get done.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FCURYBZ6IIo&feature=youtu.be

It’s hard to believe that folks in Washington, D.C. are already talking about the next Farm Bill. The reason for that is House Ag Committee Chair Collin Peterson, a Minnesota Democrat, isn’t sure yet if he’ll be running for re-election in 2020. He’s said publicly that decision will be coming in either January or February. Vilsack said even if Peterson doesn’t run again, the next farm bill will get done.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BHU9-7w_CVU&feature=youtu.be

Lastly, as President of the Dairy Export Council, he pays close attention to the country’s export situation, which hasn’t been great at all thanks to trade disputes. In spite of that, with agreements pending in Japan, as well as in North America, exports are another reason to be optimistic.

February 12, 2019February 12, 2019

Voting; Why is it so hard to do?

Voting. Why don’t we do it? I’ve got a question I’m still looking for an answer to. Why don’t Americans seem to care about the future of our country? We’d rather exchange recipes on social media than read “one more damn political post.” I get that. I get tired of it too, especially as the liberal left leans more and more toward socialism. But that’s just a symptom. When did Americans stop caring about the future of their country?

Here’s something we can’t relate to. You likely didn’t hear much about it, but Pakistan had its first elections in decades back in July of last year. Elections turned violent during that time as an explosion at a polling place killed 31 would-be voters. About 50 percent of that country turned out for the first democratic election since 1947. They cared enough about the future of THEIR country enough to risk violence.

We likely won’t have to ever face that kind of a threat at American polling locations. At least I hope not. The problem was summed up well in an article on the website enidnews.com. “The problem is “our grasp on representative government is slowly slipping away for one reason: We simply don’t care enough about our system of government to keep it.”

Remember the 2016 election when Trump ran against Hillary? The media had us all up in arms about the importance of the election to the future of our country? Only 55 percent of our eligible voters turned out to vote “in the most important election of our time.” Seriously?

Just FYI: I didn’t vote for either of them. For the first time in my life, I voted for a third-party candidate (Gary Johnson) that I knew didn’t have a shot to win. He was still better than both candidates from the “established parties.” The reason I did that? I did some research. Johnson was twice elected governor as a Libertarian in Massachusetts, a MILITANTLY liberal Democratic-leaning state. Not only was he elected twice, he left the office in better financial shape than he found it. It’s called research.

How much research did it take for my state (Minnesota) to send someone like Ilhan Omar to the House of Representatives? You’ve likely heard the rumors that she married her brother and committed immigration fraud, right? I’m going to teach you a little something about journalism 101. If there’s enough smoke (stories out there that seem to tell the same story), then there’s likely some fire (truth to the accusations).

For example, an article on the Fox 9 TV website in the Twin Cities looked into what the Congresswoman said in explaining the “miscommunication.” The TV station found some “discrepancies between Omar’s stated husband and marriage certificates that are on file with Hennepin County and the state.” How was she still elected? And why didn’t anyone push the issue farther? There are enough questions here that should have immediately disqualified her from even running.

What’s done is done, now.

She’s just one example of numerous people that likely have no business being in office. Don’t get me started on AOC out of New York. How many Republicans have spent DECADES in office? If we don’t hold our elected officials accountable with our voting, we deserve whatever happens to our country. And don’t kid yourselves, the extremist left in the Democratic party want to turn this country socialist as soon as possible. If you look at social media threads, you might be shocked at how many Americans don’t seem to have a problem with it. Its right here in their own words.

And don’t think I’m on an anti-Democrat kick. Amy Klobuchar and Collin Peterson are just two Democrats I’ve voted for in recent elections. I don’t agree with everything they say and do but there’s enough common sense that I have no problem voting for them. Hell, I was a registered Democrat when I became old enough to start voting. As I got older, I switched to Republican (White privilege kicking into effect?). After that, I’m an independent voter and will stay that way for life.

Just checking off a series of candidates under either “Republican” or “Democrat” just because that’s what you’ve always done is foolish. Have you noticed how much the parties have changed over the decades? Do you really believe either one “cares about the little guy?” They don’t. It’s Republicans and Democrats that have gotten us into the situation we find our country in. Divided. Rudderless. Broke (we are). Meantime, we just keep voting to send the same people to Washington, D.C., because they’re in the party we’ve always voted for?

The article on enidnews.com lays it out. We Americans are “pitifully unprepared when we head to the polls, and that’s where the greatest threat to our republic lies.” We’ve got little hand-held computers with us that link us to the collective knowledge of the human race. “But, by and large, we use it to chase click bait that affirms our preconceptions, leaving us collectively ill-suited to guide our own nation.”

“We gorge ourselves on only those information sources that confirm what we want to believe, because we don’t feel any incentive to put in the work required to form independent, informed policy preferences. We pick a team, we let it speak for us, and we only listen to reporting that echoes our team.” For those that only vote “Republican” or “Democrat,” does that sound familiar?

“it’s just another damn political post on some random dude’s blog.” If that’s what you’re thinking, maybe you’re right. I don’t have all the answers. But I’m not convinced that America is so far gone that it can’t come back. Maybe keeping the phone lines open to our elected officials and expressing opinions is a good start? Then, actually doing research every couple years and making an informed choice? That’s an even better idea.

January 25, 2019January 25, 2019

Government Shutdown Gets a Repreive

Trump Announces Temporary End to Partial Government Shutdown

President Trump announced Friday that he had reached an agreement with Congressional Democrats to temporarily reopen the Federal Government, ending the 35-day partial government shutdown. Nine departments had gone without funding, including the USDA. Senate lawmakers from both parties had asked the president to temporarily reopen the government while they work on a broad-scale immigration agreement. (Photo from timesofisrael.com)

President Donald Trump announced Friday that he has reached an agreement to reopen the federal government for three weeks. That three-week continuing resolution will allow furloughed federal employees to return to work. Trump also promised to get them their back-pay, “As soon as possible. It will be quick.” The remarks come on the 35th day of the shutdown. Members of the Senate from both parties have recently pushed Trump to temporarily reopen the government and restart serious negotiations on a wider-reaching immigration deal. Trump did mention the importance of allowing immigrants to legally enter the country to work, something very important to agriculture. The three-week resolution will allow the government to reopen nine unfunded departments, which includes the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Two bills to reopen the government were shot down in the Senate on Thursday. That got serious negotiations going for the first time in weeks. Trump had asked for a “down payment” on funding for a border wall in exchange for reopening the government, but it’s still unclear if he got what he asked for. Trump said he has other options that would allow him to build the southern border wall. Right now, It’s unclear if he’ll take any steps if lawmakers temporarily fund the government but don’t reach a solution on immigration.

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue today issued the following statement in response to President Donald J. Trump’s announcement of reopening the federal government:

Government shutdown — Ag Secretary Sonny Perdue is pleased that the partial government shutdown ended on Friday. He said they’ll be working to reestablish all USDA functions as soon as possible. Photo from foodsafetynews.com)

“President Trump’s announcement of the reopening of the federal government is welcome news, as it will bring thousands of our employees back to work and return us to our mission of providing our customers with the services they rely upon. I extend my sincere thanks to the thousands of USDA workers who stayed on the job during the shutdown to offer as many of our normal activities as we could. The President has already signed legislation that guarantees backpay for all employees, and we will move forward on that as soon as possible. Meanwhile, we will prepare for a smooth reestablishment of USDA functions.

“There will now be sufficient time for Congress to come to an agreement with the President on his pledge to protect our national security by securing our southern border with a reliable, effective barrier.”

Here’s the announcement from Fox 10 in Phoenix, Arizona: