HACKETT AND BUSH STAND ALONE AGAINST FARMERS

"Chris Carney fights for our family farmers. Chris Hackett opposes them--these aren't Pennsylvania values"

Clarks Summit, PA—This week, Chris Carney fought for local farmers and passed the widely supported bipartisan Farm Bill, which passed in the U.S. House of Representatives with a vote of 318-106 and passed in the U.S. Senate by a vote of 81-15.

"I'm very proud of this bipartisan bill and what it will do for farmers in northeast and central Pennsylvania," said Carney. "In particular, we are now taking the cost of feed into account when determining the price of milk. The Milk Income Loss Contract (MILC) program is the most important dairy safety net for our region. Farmers don't set their own prices--they must accept the price given to them. The costs of production incurred by our dairy producers keep going up because of the rising costs of both feed and fuel, and this bill is an important step to take the cost of production into account when determining the price of milk," Carney said.

While Chris Carney is fighting for local farmers, Chris Hackett is denouncing them. Hackett opposes the farm bill, would have voted against it, and called it "wasteful spending," (Wilkes Barre Times Leader, 5/15).

"Chris Hackett stands alone on this one," said Vincent Rongione, Campaign Manager for Carney for Congress. "This Farm Bill has meaningful results for our local farmers and community. His own party overwhelmingly voted for the bill. We worked diligently with the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau and local dairy farmers to strengthen protections and create good agriculture policy for generations. Chris Carney fights for our family farmers. Chris Hackett opposes them--these aren't Pennsylvania values"

"Hackett's extremism is right in line with President Bush's veto and the Club for Growth's outrageous opposition to the Farm Bill. Further, Hackett spent time searching for reasons NOT to support the bill. It's always easier to find a reason not to help people or to sit on the sidelines and complain...courage is stepping up and doing what is right for our family farmers," said Rongione.

The Farm Bill received significant support from the Pennsylvania Congressional delegation and both Senators Bob Casey and Arlen Specter supported it in the Senate.