From Washington with John Block

I’m going to cover some different issues today. As we all know the war in Ukraine dominates all the news. But if you were in the poultry industry, you would be very concerned about bird flu. Bird flu is deadly, and you don’t want it on your chicken farm. A Fulton County flock of 240,000 chickens had to be destroyed. Seven million chickens and turkeys in 13 states have been killed this year. Disposal of the infected flock is the only way to stop the spread.

Have you noticed the escalating cost to fill your car up with gas? I did. It’s close to $100. Of course, in Europe the bill would be twice that much. Now we have Congress pushing new legislation that would suspend the federal gasoline tax of $.184 cents per gallon.

What is at the top of our list of worries today? Ukraine. Russia has 150,000 troops surrounding Ukraine. By the time you hear this radio program, we may know if Russia is really going to invade Ukraine. President Biden and Russian President Putin have agreed to meet this coming Sunday. We need to work out some kind of compromise.

A UK farmer named Paul Temple has put on the table some issues that I’m not sure the public even thinks about. Here is the question. Are the food producers in the world prepared to continue more food production to feed a hungry world?

I am concerned, and I am not alone. I remember the skyrocketing interest rates of the late 1970’s and early 1980. Farmers and ranchers along with other borrowers were paying 12% to 16% interest on their loans. Farmers borrow money almost every year to finance fertilizer, seed, chemicals, and machinery to plant, care for, and harvest their crops. The inflationary costs destroyed thousands of farms and all kinds of family businesses.

Today I want to talk about the Annual Cabinet luncheon that we have been having for more than 40 years. It all started with President Reagan’s Cabinet in 1981. Vice President Bush led our team of twelve for our first Cabinet luncheon at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington, DC.

Here I am looking at a full-page picture of damage and destruction delivered by deadly tornadoes. Hog barns, grain elevators, family homes, churches, everything destroyed. Kentucky was hit the worst, but a number of other states were not spared. Our support and prayers must reach out to the suffering families.

The House of Representatives last Friday passed a huge spending bill. It is a liberal spending bonanza. If we give enough money, that should buy votes. The bill passed 220-213. Not one Republican vote. You can argue that the infrastructure bill that President Biden signed into law was bipartisan. But this entitlement legislation is not. Here is where the money goes: enhanced child allowances, earned income tax credit money, childcare entitlements, universal pre-kindergarten, and a lot more.

Hard to believe that it is almost November. Our harvest on the farm is not quite wrapped up. I am starting to think about next year and the challenges we will face. We can not ignore the explosion in the cost of energy. Winter is coming.

President Biden surrenders to the Taliban. The war in Afghanistan is officially over. After 20 years of conflict and more than 2400 American lives lost and 20,000 of our service members wounded, and now the Taliban rules Afghanistan. I wanted us to get out. But not like we did.