09-08-11 *The White House* President Obama’s Address to a Joint Session of Congress‏ on Jobs

FACT SHEET: American Jobs Act

THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

September 8, 2011

Mr. Speaker, Mr. Vice President, Members of Congress, and fellow Americans:

Tonight we meet at an urgent time for our country.  We continue to face an economic crisis that has left millions of our neighbors jobless, and a political crisis that has made things worse.

This past week, reporters have been asking “What will this speech mean for the President?  What will it mean for Congress?  How will it affect their polls, and the next election?”

But the millions of Americans who are watching right now:  they don’t care about politics.  They have real life concerns.  Many have spent months looking for work.  Others are doing their best just to scrape by – giving up nights out with the family to save on gas or make the mortgage; postponing retirement to send a kid to college.

These men and women grew up with faith in an America where hard work and responsibility paid off.   They believed in a country where everyone gets a fair shake and does their fair share – where if you stepped up, did your job, and were loyal to your company, that loyalty would be rewarded with a decent salary and good benefits; maybe a raise once in awhile.  If you did the right thing, you could make it in America.

But for decades now, Americans have watched that compact erode.  They have seen the deck too often stacked against them.  And they know that Washington hasn’t always put their interests first.

09-08-11 CO Gov Hickenlooper statement on President Obama’s speech

DENVER ¬— Thursday, Sept. 8, 2011 — Gov. John Hickenlooper released this statement about President Barack Obama’s speech tonight in Washington, D.C.:

“The President described an integrated plan that involves tax credits and tax cuts to help encourage businesses to hire workers. He acknowledged the need to pay for these efforts so the federal deficit is not made worse in the long-run. Helping to spur investment with an infrastructure bank also strikes us as a smart idea that deserves serious consideration by Congress.

“What matters more than the details of this package is the important opportunity Congress and the President have to kick election politics aside and demonstrate to Coloradans and to the country that government in Washington, D.C., is not broken and that Congress can get things done to help the economy.

“President Obama is on the right track. We hope everyone can now put aside the partisan division we saw during the debt ceiling debate this summer and work together toward economic recovery.”

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09-08-11 NAWG News: Report form Washington DC…

Report from Washington

Sept. 8, 2011 / Volume 51 / Issue 28

• And They’re Back: Congress Returns to Steep Agenda
• Congress Ramps Up FY2012 Approps As End of FY2011 Nears
• Debt-Deficit Super Committee Holds First Business Meeting
• Small Steps Seen on FTAs as Pressure, Frustration Mounts
• NAWG Secretary-Treasurer Comes East for 25x’25, Policy Meetings
• Grower Applications for WILOT Training Due to NAWG Sept. 30

Editor’s note: As noted in previous editions, starting this week, NAWG’s Report from Washington will be published on Thursdays, versus Fridays. Questions, comments or concerns can be directed to Melissa Kessler at mkessler (at) wheatworld.org. 

And They’re Back: Congress Returns to Steep Agenda

USGC Global Update for September 8, 2011‏

USGC Sees New Opportunities in India’s Political Dialogue – Page 1
Regional DDGS and Corn Gluten Buyers Conferences in Panama City and Geneva – Page 1
Brazilian Corn Outlook – Page 2
Brazil’s Export Corn Markets – Page 2
Corn Market Year Statistics Highlight Changes – Page 3
Grain Sorghum Exports “Good News, Bad News” – Page 3
Council Activity Calendar – Page 4

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USGC Sees New Opportunities in India’s Political Dialogue
A “subtle change in tenor with regard to trade and new technology” is the most notable take-away from a recent fact-finding visit to India, said Rebecca Bratter, U.S. Grains Council vice president of international operations. The recent popular movement targeting government reform, “could be the tipping point,” Bratter noted.

In meetings with Indian officials and agricultural interest groups, Bratter noted increased chatter from Council partners and stakeholders on  plans to address challenges and opportunities in favor of trade and technology. While longstanding barriers to U.S. agricultural trade with India persist, Bratter was encouraged by the emerging new class of leaders and innovators that understand the need for new broad-based engagement on the positive role of innovation in agricultural technology for ensuring long-term food security.

09-08-11 US House Ag Committee: Lucas to Jackson: Clarify Record on So-Called Regulatory ‘Myths’

Says our farmers and ranchers need certainty to invest in economy

WASHINGTON – Frank D. Lucas, Chairman of the House Committee on Agriculture, sent a letter today to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lisa Jackson requesting a response to a list of questions from a bipartisan group of lawmakers that was submitted to her agency nearly six months ago. Administrator Jackson testified before the Committee on March 10, 2011 at a hearing on EPA regulations. Following the hearing, members of the Agriculture Committee submitted questions for the record to clarify EPA’s proposed actions and to gather more information about potential impacts on agriculture.

The EPA currently has more than 300 regulations under consideration, which could affect issues ranging from farm dust to federal jurisdiction over small streams and ponds. The American Council for Capital Formation estimates that by 2014, EPA regulations will cost Americans anywhere from $47 billion to $141 billion, and eliminate between 476 thousand and 1.4 million jobs.

The lack of transparency and uncertainty surrounding potential EPA regulations is also damaging to economic growth, as businesses are hesitant to make job-creating investments without knowing the regulatory environment in which they will be operating.

A copy of the letter can found here. The text is below:

09-08-11 US House Subcommittee Holds Audit Hearing on Dairy Programs

WASHINGTON – Today, Rep. Thomas Rooney, Chairman of the House Agriculture Committee’s Subcommittee on Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry held an audit hearing to examine U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) dairy programs. This is the tenth hearing in the series on farm policy that is designed to provide oversight of current spending to ensure programs are delivered effectively. It also provides Members of the Committee with a comprehensive view of farm programs.

Current dairy programs include the Dairy Product Price Support Program (DPPSP), Milk Income Loss Contract (MILC) Program, Dairy Export Incentive Program (DEIP), Livestock Gross Margin Insurance for Dairy (LGM-Dairy), and Federal Milk Marketing Orders (FMMOs). Members of the Subcommittee heard testimony about how these programs are working, current conditions and productivity in the dairy industry, and possible public policy challenges moving forward.

“The events of 2009 exposed what many have long-held to be an inadequacy of some of our current dairy programs.  While some observers may argue that additional funding may improve the overall effectiveness of our dairy safety net, our current budgetary outlook makes this option a non-starter.  Innovative and effective ideas are needed in order to ensure that our programs support our producers, facilitate product and market development, and continue to ensure the availability of safe, abundant, and affordable products for our consumers.  Today’s hearing provided our Subcommittee with an important perspective about the strengths and weaknesses of our existing programs,” said Chairman Thomas Rooney (R-FL).

“The dairy industry has always faced a rocky road, but the past few years have been particularly hard for California producers. It is extremely important that future dairy policy builds a strong base so dairies can continue to produce milk and consumers can continue to enjoy domestically produced products here at home,“ said Ranking Member Dennis Cardoza (D-CA).

09-08-11 US Senator Bennet (D-CO) Patent Reform Bill Receives Final Approval In Congress, Will Help Spur Innovation, Create Jobs in Colorado

Includes Bennet and Udall Measure for New Patent Satellite Offices

Washington, DC – Colorado U.S. Senators Michael Bennet and Mark Udall today applauded final passage of the America Invents Act, a bill that will create jobs, promote innovation and improve our ability to compete economically with countries across the globe. The bill passed the Senate by a vote of 89 to 9 and, having passed the House in June, will be sent to the President for his signature into law.

The America Invents Act includes several Bennet-led measures to make the patent process more effective and affordable for small entities; create satellite U.S. Patent and Trademark Offices (USPTO) as a means to relieve the logjam of patents awaiting approval; and to make patent litigation less imposing and more predictable for our innovators.

“Colorado has abundant creativity and entrepreneurial spirit, but our current patent process has become a barrier to new inventions, new businesses and new jobs,” said Bennet. “Making the U.S. patent process more efficient and decreasing patent costs will help spur our economy, encourage innovation and create high-paying jobs here at home. Now our patent process will be a catalyst for innovative minds and help our entrepreneurs thrive.”

On his amendment to create satellite U.S. Patent and Trademark offices, Bennet said, “Patent offices should be great resources for innovators and inventors, not a place where new ideas go to languish. More patent offices will give us the means to speed up and streamline the process and unleash a new wave of innovation that creates jobs and grows our economy. We can’t expect to compete with the rest of the world if we don’t have the infrastructure necessary to support the inventors and entrepreneurs who will help create the jobs of tomorrow.  As a gateway of the West, Colorado is an ideal location for a new office.  It is perfectly situated to connect innovators and businesses across the country.”

Udall, who cosponsored the satellite office amendment, said, “A satellite patent office in Denver would put to good use our skilled workforce and create immediate jobs that ripple out into our communities,” Udall said. “It would also put our state on the map as a hub for entrepreneurship and attract the start-up companies and quality researchers who further spur job growth in our state.”

09-08-11 Colorado State University Releases Two Promising Wheat Varieties…”Byrd” & “Brawl CL Plus”

The Byrd wheat variety outpaced all others in yield during Colorado field tests.

Byrd Curtis, the first wheat breeder in CSU’s 50-year-old wheat program, is namesake of a new and promising variety of hard red winter wheat developed at CSU. He stands in a greenhouse with current CSU wheat breeder Scott Haley.

FORT COLLINS - Wheat researcher Scott Haley recently walked through a maze of carefully labeled seed packets in a Colorado State University workroom, knowing that amid the array there just might be a new variety that yields success for state wheat growers.

The cache represents more than 30,000 experimental varieties that Haley and his team have developed and will plant in 14 Colorado test plots in September in their ongoing hunt for wheat that thrives in the state’s harsh growing conditions.

“Plant breeding has been likened to a numbers game because genetics is all about probability,” said Haley, who leads the renowned CSU Wheat Breeding and Genetics Program. “From crosses with just a few varieties, you can develop millions of possible trait outcomes, and that’s what we do. We’re looking for the needle in the haystack that will perform well and become the new variety we release to farmers.”

Haley and his team released two such varieties of hard red winter wheat in August, following more than eight years of development and analysis. Research data suggest the varieties – called “Byrd” and “Brawl CL Plus” – have the capacity to produce higher yields and excellent baking flour, even in the face of Colorado farming challenges, including drought, changing climactic conditions, and newly emergent insects and disease.

09-08-11 Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City’s Main Street Economist explores whether U.S. food prices will follow global trends…

 

Driven by higher commodity prices, global food prices soared to record highs in 2011. Higher food prices are straining the household budgets of global consumers, especially in poorer nations where food spending can account for almost half of household expenditures.

 

 

World populations are experiencing some modest relief as global food prices have eased since peaking in February, yet U.S. food prices have climbed higher in recent months. In the latest issue of the Main Street Economist, Omaha Branch Executive Jason Henderson examines global and U.S. food price trends, as well as the impacts on low-income populations.

 

 

“Low-income populations across the globe bear the biggest burden from higher food costs,” said Henderson. “Even in the U.S., low-income populations spend roughly a third of their income on food.”

 

 

Henderson explains that differences in world and U.S. food consumption patterns underlie the divergence between global and U.S. food prices. Although commodity prices have driven recent global food price trends, the prevalent consumption of processed and prepared foods means that wages and labor markets more heavily influence U.S. food prices.

 

 

09-08-11 US Sen Bennet (D-CO): Export-Import Bank Can Help Expand Markets for Colorado Clean Tech Industry

Bipartisan Export-Import Bank Reauthorization Bill Clears Key Senate Hurdle 

Includes Bennet Provisions Encouraging Financing for Renewable Energy and Increased Reporting on Renewable Energy Exports

Washington, DC – Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet today helped pass a bipartisan bill out of the Senate Banking Committee to ensure the Export-Import (Ex-Im) Bank can continue to help finance American exports, spur job growth and expand markets for Colorado’s renewable energy and clean tech industries.

“This is a common-sense, fiscally responsible way to help open up new markets to Colorado products, expand our businesses and spur job growth,” said Bennet. “The Export-Import Bank has assisted American employers that want to grow, reach new markets and create good-paying jobs. At times like these, it is incredibly important that we have such a dependable lending resource to help us compete in the global economy and keep jobs here at home.”

The Export-Import Reauthorization Act of 2011 extends the bank’s lending authority for another four years and expands the amount it can lend and guarantee, allowing it to provide loans to more American companies that want to reach markets abroad.

09-08-11 *USDA News* Members Named to Seven Agricultural Trade Advisory Committees

Additional Applicants Sought

            WASHINGTON, Sept. 8, 2011 – Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and United States Trade Representative Ron Kirk today announced the appointment of 148 private-sector members to the Agricultural Policy Advisory Committee (APAC) and six Agricultural Technical Advisory Committees (ATACs).

“With U.S. agricultural exports reaching record highs as our farmers and ranchers bring the American brand to more of the world consumers, agricultural trade is demonstrating once again its vital role in the health of our nation’s economy,” said Vilsack. “Members of these seven committees understand the importance of open markets to the U.S. economy. By serving on these committees, they have the opportunity to provide their expertise and knowledge to deliberations that influence U.S. trade policy, ultimately helping to grow, innovate and out-compete the rest of the world.”

“These appointments are an important step in the Obama Administration’s ongoing efforts to expand trade and bring new opportunities to America’s farmers and ranchers, as well as the businesses and workers they support,” said Ambassador Kirk. “Agricultural exports are a critical component of America’s economy, and the input and advice these individuals will provide in the coming years will be indispensible in helping to identify and capitalize on new and emerging trade opportunities.”

Congress established the advisory committee system in 1974 to ensure a private-sector voice in establishing U.S. agricultural trade policy objectives to reflect U.S. commercial and economic interests. The U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative jointly manage the committees.

The APAC provides advice and information to the Secretary of Agriculture and the U.S. Trade Representative on negotiating objectives, positions and other matters related to the development, implementation and administration of U.S. agricultural trade policy. The ATACs offer technical advice and information on specific commodities.

The six ATACs are:

09-08-11 *NAWG Monthly* Mark Gaede on Congress’ Return…Budget…Farm Bill…FTA’s & MORE

Mark Gaede, Director of Government Affairs for Enviromental Policy

(The BARN – Briggsdale, CO) Joining me inside the BARN today is Mark Gaede, Director of Government Affairs for Enviromental Policy with the National Association of Wheat Growers (NAWG). Gaede details what took place @ today’s Joint Budget Selection Committee “Super Committee” in Washingrton DC and what his thoughts are in regards to budget/deficit situation, the 2012 Farm Bill & those three pending Free Trade Agreements that seem to be stalled on Capitol Hill…

090811_NAWGMonthly_MarkGaede_16m47s

Learn more about the National Association of Wheat Growers – CLICK HERE

Learn more about the Colorado Association of Wheat Growers, a NAWG member – CLICK HERE 

To learn which members of Congress are part of the “Super Committee” – LOOK BELOW:

09-08-11 Colorado Daily Weighted Average Cattle Report – Negotiated Purchases

COLORADO DAILY WEIGHTED AVERAGE CATTLE REPORT – NEGOTIATED PURCHASES
LM_CT128
St Joseph, MO    Thu Sep 8, 2011    USDA Market News

(Includes all transactions regardless of delivery day)
Recap for: Wednesday, 9/7/2011

Confirmed:        none        Week Ago:      105        Last Year:    7,487
Week to Date:    none        Week Ago:      105        Last Year:    7,487

LIVE FOB BASIS – Beef Breeds

09-08-11 Western Caucus Releases “Jobs Frontier” Report

CLICK HERE to view

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, Senate Western Caucus Chairman John Barrasso (R-WY), Congressional Western Caucus Chairman Steve Pearce (R-NM), and members of the Senate and House Western Caucuses released the “Jobs Frontier” report.

This pro growth plan will protect and create jobs in the West and across America.   It highlights over 40 concrete legislative solutions that will cut red tape, develop American energy and break down barriers to private sector job creation.

“Our ‘Jobs Frontier’ report contains answers to many of Washington’s problems,” said Senator Barrasso. “Our plan will cut red tape, develop energy and create jobs in the West and across America.   Our bills are ready – we just need a willing partner in the White House.   If the President really wants to support bipartisan solutions, he will embrace our plan today. ”

“In order to balance our budget and get our fiscal house in order, we must focus on growing the economy and creating jobs,” said Representative Pearce.   “After 2 ½ years of skyrocketing debt and increased unemployment, the Obama Administration’s policies have proven to be complete failures.  I am proud to introduce the Jobs Frontier report with my colleagues from the Western Caucus.  This report is a collection of legislation supported by western representatives that understand how to unleash the West’s full  job creating potential.”

Background:

Since President Obama took office, America has lost approximately 2.3 million jobs and the unemployment rate has increased from 7.8 percent to 9.1 percent.  Americans in six western states have over 9 percent unemployment (Washington, Arizona, Idaho, Oregon, California and Nevada).

In the “Jobs Frontier” report, Western Caucus Members highlight over 40 legislative solutions  that will create jobs by:

09-08-11 Ask your veterinarian if you’re at risk for trichomoniasis

St. Joseph, Missouri, September 8, 2011 — Open cows and transmittable diseases are two phrases no cattleman wants to hear. But unfortunately, the spread of a lingering disease known as trichomoniasis is bringing them back to mind. Your herd could be the next target for trichomoniasis if prevention isn’t part of your herd health protocol.

What is trich?
Trichomoniasis is a sexually transmitted, venereal disease that poses a real threat to bulls and breeding-age females. The disease is trademarked by reduced calf crops from open, infected cows in addition to lighter weaning weights from a longer calving season. Dr. Travis Van Anne, Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc., Professional Services Veterinarian says, “Thirty to 50 percent open rates aren’t out of the question for infected herds.”

While clinical signs will not be present, bulls are the carrier of trichomoniasis and spread it to cows at breeding. “Infected cows won’t appear any different, but a uterine inflammatory response could happen followed by an abortion, or she simply won’t conceive at all,” says Dr. Van Anne. And while cows may be able to clear themselves of the disease in two to four months, bulls will continue to carry and spread it each time they breed a cow.

Purchased bulls should be tested and confirmed free of trichomoniasis before entering your herd. Many states have trichomoniasis-specific regulations on importing breeding bulls into the state. To learn more about these regulations, consult with your veterinarian or contact your state’s board of animal health. In addition to knowing the rules, producers should be wary of bull breeders who aren’t compliant with these regulations in an effort to expedite bull sales. Make sure you are purchasing bulls that come from reputable sources, and have tested negative for trich.

The economics behind trich losses