THE PRESIDENT: Thank you all. (Applause.) Please be seated.
(Applause.) Thanks for the warm welcome. It's good to be on a farm.
(Laughter.) American farm and ranch families embody the best values of
our country, don't they? Love of family, love of the land, love of
their country. These are good, hard working people. Farming is what I
like to call America's first industry. And that industry feeds us and
it clothes us. It's now providing more energy for us.
The success of America's farmers and ranchers is essential to the
success of our country. That's why it's fitting we're here on a farm
to talk about the success of America. I'm going to talk about another
role that farmers play today, and that's the essential role of being
good stewards of our land, and how the federal government can help.
See, I like to tell people every day is Earth Day if you make a living
off the land, because people care more about the land if the person has
to make a living off the land. (Applause.)
And so today, I'm going to talk about some initiatives where the
federal government can help the best stewards of the land be better
stewards of the land. I want to thank you all for coming. I
appreciate the Governor. Thank you for being here, sir. Thank you for
your introduction. I particularly want to thank Mark and Shirley
Katzenmeyer, they're the host family here. Little did they realize --
(Applause.) Where is Mark?
MR. KATZENMEYER: Right over here, sir.
THE PRESIDENT: Oh, there you are. Good, you got a good seat.
That's good. (Laughter.) And Karen, as well, their sweet daughter.
Thanks for coming, Karen.
Guess what we talked about? Mountain biking. (Laughter.) Mark is
a mountain biker, and, gosh, what a special place to mountain bike,
isn't it? I'm sorry I didn't bring mine. (Laughter.)
MR. KATZENMEYER: You can borrow one.
THE PRESIDENT: I could borrow one, yes. Well, I'm not that
sorry. Anyway -- (Laughter.) But I really appreciate your
hospitality. Senator Norm Coleman is with us, and the Governor. We
were on the same helicopter. He said, I wonder if the Katzenmeyers
really understood what was about to happen. (Laughter.) Four choppers
heading into their farm. But thanks for having us. I also want to
thank your neighbors for putting up with us, and I appreciate you all
coming.
I want to thank Norm. He's a good friend, a fine United States
senator. I appreciate Gil Gutknecht, and the congressman for this
area, John Kline, is with us, too. Thank you both for being here. I'm
honored you guys are here. I also want to thank -- (applause) -- I
want to thank Vicky, who is John's wife. I appreciate you coming,
Vicky.
I thank the Mayor of Le Sueur for being here. Mr. Mayor,
appreciate you coming.
MAYOR OBERLE: You're welcome.
THE PRESIDENT: Yes, thank you. It's an honor for us to be here.
I want to thank the other local officials who've come. I want to thank
the conservation groups. I see some of my friends from the
conservation groups, the people who want to make sure that the land is
taken care of so wildlife can flourish. We're going to talk about
something today that I think you'll appreciate. As a matter of fact,
you've been instrumental in helping to construct the policy. I want to
thank -- and the farmers and ranchers who are here. It's -- it's
really good to be here.
Bryan -- there's Bryan. Yes, today, when I landed, by the way, I
always like to greet somebody in the community who is serving the
community by volunteering. And Bryan Comstock is a volunteer
firefighter for this part of the world. I want to thank you for being
here. I told him I was a supporter of the Crawford Volunteer Fire
Department. I know something about it. It's -- these volunteer fire
departments are really important for rural America, and I want to thank
Bryan and others who are volunteering time to help these farmers and
ranchers who might get in trouble because of a sudden or instant fire.
At any rate, we -- this country better appreciate our farmers and
ranchers. It's -- really the cornerstone of good economic policy is
good farm policy, isn't it? And I'm -- I appreciate the effects of the
Farm Bill that we worked on and passed. It's a good bill. And it's
making a difference.
It has helped farmers because it helped them plan and operate on
market realities -- not based upon government dictates. It's important
any bill that deals with economics to understand the markets, and that
we view the markets as important. And a market-oriented approach to
farming is good, and it's working. It's making a difference for people
right now.
One reason it is, is because we recognize there's a lot of
consumers for American farm products outside the United States. Good
farm policy is good trade policy. Listen, if you're good at something,
and we're really good at growing things, we ought to be selling what we
grow -- not only here at home, but elsewhere. I'm committed to making
sure that markets are open, and we're treated fairly. I like to
explain trade to our people this way, that we've opened up our markets
here in the United States, and it's good for consumers we do. Think
about it. When you get more products coming into the country, you can
shop. You can make decisions. The more opportunities you have to
decide, you're going to get better quality at a better price. That's
just the way it is. That's the way the market works. We want to be
treated in other countries the way we treat people here at home.
That's good trade policy. And so we're opening up markets. The more
markets we open up, the better it is for farmers and ranchers because
we can compete with anybody, anytime, anywhere just so long as the
playing field is level.
And as a result -- we also, by the way, cut taxes on our farmers
and ranchers, as well as everybody else who paid taxes. (Applause.)
That helps. I like to tell people I think the people in southern
Minnesota can spend their money better than the federal government
can. Now, we'll set priorities. Don't get me wrong. (Laughter.) We
got a war to win. We've got a homeland to protect. We got people to
take care of that can't take of themselves. But by setting priorities,
I believe that you can meet obligations and let people have more of
their own money. It helps this economy grow -- I'm telling you. When
you got more money in your pocket, you demand an additional good or a
service. And when you make that demand, somebody is going to produce
it. And when somebody produces it, somebody is likely to find a job.
We also put the death tax on its way to extinction. In order to
have a vibrant agricultural economy, it must be so that people can pass
their farm from one generation to the next without the federal
government getting in the way. (Applause.) We're going to have to
make the death tax -- the elimination of the death tax permanent. In
order to get it out of the Congress, it's -- it was a decision to say,
okay, we're going to put it on its way to extinction, and then it comes
back after 10 years. That's the way -- that's the way we had to get it
out -- which means in the year 2011, there's going to be some unusual
decisions by people when the death tax comes into being. I'm pledged
-- I'm pledged to eliminate it totally. I don't think it makes any
sense. I don't think you ought to -- (Applause.)
Anyway, we've taken action. And the productivity of our farmers
are -- it really means we can compete anywhere. And therefore,
America's farmers have posted record net cash, farm income. I'm not
talking about good -- I'm talking about record. Our exports are way
up. Farm equity and land values are strong. In other words, we got a
good -- a good farm economy. And I intend to keep it that way as best
as I possibly can.
I'm going to talk about conserving the land. The best thing from
the Farm Bill was the conservation title. It encouraged people to put
aside lands for the right reasons, to protect the soil, protect the
water, provide habitat for wildlife. The conservation title was
doubled from the previous farm bill to this one. It's up to about $40
billion over a 10-year period of time. The Katzenmeyers understand
it. Here's what Shirley said, she said, you're giving back to nature,
when it comes to putting money -- the land aside for the CRP. You're
giving back to nature. You're giving back something to the soil so it
doesn't get depleted. All around it's a good practice.
I agree. And so do farmers all across America. (Applause.) So
the main reason I've asked you all to come -- besides being in a
beautiful part of the world -- was to talk about three initiatives I
think you'll find interesting, three initiatives important for our
country. Three initiatives which enable our farmers and sportsmen to
continue their roles as citizen-stewards of the land. This initiative
I think is good for the environment. It's good for the agricultural
sector.
First, we're going to expand and extend the Conservation Reserve
Program. The Conservation Reserve Program -- (applause) -- is the
largest public-private conservation partnership in the nation.
Approximately 800,000 farmers participate in this program. In return
for an annual payment from this program, farmers retire some of their
land, letting it turn back to its natural state. As I told you, it's
good for the soil. It's good for habitat. Interestingly enough, one
of the things I like to ask, does it work. The question we need to ask
more often in Washington, D.C., is it actually working. In this case,
this program has helped reduce soil erosion by more than 40 percent
since 1986. That is a positive development for America. Right now we
have -- (applause) -- right now we have 35 million acres of farmland in
the CRP, the Conservation Reserve Program. Contracts covering roughly
two-thirds of the existing land in the program are scheduled to expire
in 2007 and 2008. To make sure these farmlands stay protected, I
directed the Secretary of Agriculture to offer early re-enrollments and
extensions of existing contracts. (Applause.)
The farmers no longer need to worry about whether or not this --
they'll be re-enrolled in the program. As of this moment, you will
be. We're taking action now rather than waiting so that there's
certainty when it comes to planning. I'm also directing the Secretary
to enroll farmers for an additional 800,000 acres of land. (Applause.)
Secondly, we're going to expand the conservation program to cover
vital grasslands that often serve as borders of farmlands. I'm
ordering the Secretary of Agriculture to help protect 250,000 acres of
grasslands, which are the home of several species of birds, including
the Northern Bobwhite Quail. By expanding this program, our goal is to
increase the quail population by about 750,000 birds a year.
Thirdly, we're going to expand the conservation program to cover
wetlands that are not -- (applause) -- the CRP now covers wetlands that
are in a flood plain. But if you're out of a flood plain -- if your
wetlands are out of a flood plain, you're not currently eligible for
the program. These wetlands are what the farmers around here call
"prairie potholes," and offer a home for pheasants and ducks and other
birds. These prairie potholes will now be a part of the CRP, and
that's good for wildlife. I'm also making available resources needed
to help farmers protect 250,000 acres of such wetlands. This is part
of an initiative that I outlined last Earth Day which was to restore,
improve and protect at least 3 million wetland acres over the next five
years.
AUDIENCE MEMBER: Thank you, Mr. President. (Applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: And that's what I'm here to announce. I'm here to
announce we can do a good job of conserving nature by empowering our
farmers and ranchers. I want to thank the wildlife people that are
here. I want to thank you for your practical way of approaching
important issues for our country. I particularly want to thank the
farmers and ranchers who are here for doing what you were raised to do,
which is feed us, and help clothe us, and in the meantime, protect your
land, which is good for the country.
I'm honored to be here. Mr. Mayor, thanks for coming. It's great
to be -- it's great to be in a part of the world where people work with
their hands and make a living off the land.
God bless you all, and may God continue to bless our great
country. Thank you very much. (Applause.)