U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow said during an appearance at the CNN-Politico Grill outside the Democratic National Convention on Thursday that she remains hopeful of passing one more farm bill before her term ends at the end of the year, adding another to a record-breaking streak of getting the bills passed.
“We’ve always been able to keep partisan politics out of this process, but it’s getting harder and harder,” Stabenow (D-Lansing) said Thursday. “I’m doing everything I can before the end of the year. I put forward my own bill, section by section.”
Stabenow, the chair of the Senate Agriculture Committee who has served four terms in the chamber, has endorsed U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-Holly) to succeed her. Slotkin faces former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers (R-White Lake) in November.
Stabenow said that the proposal in the U.S. House of Representatives doesn’t have the votes to pass and applies aid unevenly.
The CNN-POLITICO Grill during the Democratic National Convention in Chicaog, Ill., on Aug. 23, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)
U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Lansing, is interviewed by POLITICO Congress reporter Emma Dumain during a Michigan Democratic Party delogation breakfast during the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Ill., on Aug. 22, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)
U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Lansing, is interviewed by POLITICO Congress reporter Emma Dumain during a Michigan Democratic Party delogation breakfast during the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Ill., on Aug. 22, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)
The CNN-POLITICO Grill during the Democratic National Convention in Chicaog, Ill., on Aug. 22, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)
U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Lansing, is interviewed by POLITICO Congress reporter Emma Dumain during a Michigan Democratic Party delegation breakfast during the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Ill., on Aug. 22, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)
U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Lansing, is interviewed by POLITICO Congress reporter Emma Dumain during a Michigan Democratic Party delegation breakfast during the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Ill., on Aug. 22, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)
“Unfortunately, they passed something that takes money off the nutrition title, which we never do, and … skewed to the South, and the Midwest is not happy,” Stabenow said. “If I voted for the House Bill, I’d get killed by my commodity groups because wheat, corn, beans – everything Midwest gets the short end of the stick.”
Stabenow has laid out her own proposal, and while she said that she has heard concerns from some of her colleagues, they have not offered their own proposals.
“We’ve yet to get anything written down as a proposal. We hear concerns about our bill, but I’ve had no on paper proposals from the other side,” Stabenow said. “So we’re trying to start there. It appears they’re deferring to the House that doesn’t have the votes to pass their bill. So, I keep going, ‘OK, if you’re deferring over here and it can’t pass, what’s your plan B?’ Because we need a farm bill. Farmers need a farm bill. Families need a farm bill.”
Ultimately, Stabenow said there are numerous stakeholder groups that will all shape the conversation as the push and pull continues over the final four months of her time in Congress.
“Folks need to understand how you do that,” Stabenow said. “I’ve been around a long time. I know how you do this.”
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