Democrat Senators Hold On To Hope For New Farm Bill This Year

Posted by Brian Gould Mon, 19 Nov 2007 16:27:00 GMT

Several Democratic senators gathered Friday to tell reporters that there is still time this year for the Senate to approve its $286 billion 2007 farm bill and then merge it with a House version and send it to the White House.

Democrats and a few Republicans in the Senate who wanted to break a filibuster blocking passage of the 2007 farm bill were delivered a blow Friday when a measure to invoke cloture and force a vote failed.

But Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, reversed earlier pessimistic forecasts, saying, “I want to assure everyone that we have not given up. This is just the first round.”

Earlier Friday, before the cloture vote, Harkin warned: “It won’t happen if we don’t get cloture. If we don’t get cloture, my friends, there probably won’t be any farm bill.”

Later, though, he told reporters a lot of negotiating would be taking place over the Senate’s two-week Thanksgiving break.

“This bill is going to get done,” he said, although he mentioned the possibility that it might “slip into next year” before that happens.