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Rick Perry presidential campaign, 2016/Agricultural subsidies
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 Rick Perry |
Governor of Texas (2000-2015) Lieutenant Governor of Texas (1998-2000) Texas Agriculture Commissioner (1990 - 1998) Texas House of Representatives (1984-1990) |
 Republican candidate: |
2028 • 2024 • 2020 • 2016 |
This page was current as of the 2016 election.
| Perry speaks at the Iowa Agriculture Summit on March 7, 2015. |
- Rick Perry attended the Iowa Agriculture Summit on March 7, 2015, where he suggested questions of agricultural subsidies are best decided at the state level. When asked for his opinion on the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), Perry said, "Obviously, I've got a record with RFS as the governor of the state of Texas, and what we saw back in 2010, 2011 time period, when I wrote a letter asking for some waivers from that, was, if you will, a bringing together of some really difficult drought conditions in the state of Texas and representing those individuals. And looking back on it, I made the right decision for the people of the state of Texas and the beef cattle producers at that particular point and time. Obviously, these subsidies have gone away. The RFS is out there in front of us. Here's what I will tell you, be real clear about: I don’t think you pull the RFS out and discriminate against the RFS and leave all these other subsidies and mandates and other policies into place." Perry ultimately stated the federal government shouldn't be "picking winners and losers when it comes to agricultural products."[2]
- In 2011, Perry declined to comment on whether he supported the renewable fuel standard for ethanol, saying instead, "We need equitable tax treatment for all fuel producers."[3]
- In 2007, Perry supported converting biomass into ethanol instead of corn, saying, "We don't want to be put in the place of having to decide whether we are going to feed cattle or fuel vehicles."[4]
- In 1995, Perry advocated for the removal of direct farm subsidies and the implementation of incentives like lowering the capital gains and inheritance taxes. Explaining his vision for new agricultural legislation, Perry said, "In the 1995 farm bill, we must carefully but thoughtfully move our farmers and ranchers away from a subsidized system to a market-driven system. We must move away from government assistance to opportunity enhancement."[4]
- As the Texas agriculture commissioner, Perry supported the use of ethanol in reformulated gasoline in 1993. Perry explained in a press release, "Ethanol also has the potential to raise the price corn farmers receive by 16 to 20 cents a bushel. I am excited about its potential for the Texas economy, and I strongly support its increased use and production in the Lone Star State."[4]
- Perry worked as a tenant farmer throughout the 1980s. According to a 2011 NPR profile of Perry, "a big portion of the income from his own property came from federal farm subsidies, which actually paid him not to produce a crop."[5]
- The Austin American-Statesman reported that Perry received $72,687 in farm subsidies between 1987 and 1989.[4]
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term Rick + Perry + Agricultural + Subsidies
See also
Footnotes
- ↑ CNN, "Rick Perry launches comeback White House bid," June 4, 2015
- ↑ YouTube, "Rick Perry at the Iowa Ag Summit," March 17, 2015
- ↑ The Des Moines Register, "Iowa farmers blast Rick Perry’s answer to their questions about ethanol mandate," August 27, 2011
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 The Statesman, “Will subsidies to farmer Perry come back to haunt presidential hopeful Perry?" August 7, 2011
- ↑ NPR, "For Rick Perry, A Restless Life On The Farm," October 7, 2011
