**Middleton, WI, ** – Phil Anderson, an independent libertarian candidate for the U.S. Senate from Wisconsin, today unveiled his comprehensive plan to overhaul federal farm policy. Anderson’s proposal addresses the failings of the current Farm Bill, which he argues has increasingly favored corporate interests, stifled innovation, and negatively impacted the health and wealth of Americans.
“Wisconsin farmers are resilient and resourceful, uniquely able to prosper despite tough odds. The government can best support Wisconsin’s family farms and foster this resiliency by getting out of the way,” stated Anderson.
HIS PLAN: A Market-based Approach
In a true free market, consumer demand would dictate what and how much farmers grow. However, under our current system, public-private-partnerships, subsidies, and crop insurance disrupt this natural order. Taxpayer subsidized crop insurance steers farmers toward commodity crops like corn, soybeans, and wheat, but does not often cover “specialty” crops like fruits and vegetables.
Government insurance programs are designed to incentivize the factory food industry, responding to the wishes of corporate donors rather than the needs of farmers and the health of the American people. The insidious effects of the factory food industry (corn, high fructose corn syrup, in particular) on the American diet are well-documented, contributing to serious chronic health conditions like diabetes, liver and heart disease, and obesity.
Phil Anderson believes that we need to fundamentally change the way we think about farming in the United States – removing the lucrative government incentives to plant corn and other commodity crops and encouraging organic, independent, and environmentally sustainable farming practices that promote public health and preserve the land.
“The current Farm Bill has increasingly coddled corporate cronies, stifled innovation, and contributed to the failing health – and wealth – of Americans,” said Anderson. “As your U.S. senator, I would advocate freeing our farmers from bureaucratic and corporate control, bringing a fresh, market-based approach to federal farm policy.”
Cut the Pork and Cancel Cronyism
With an annual federal deficit of over a trillion dollars, enough is enough. Congress needs to cut the fat, and the Farm Bill has plenty. If elected, Phil Anderson would advocate to:
- Eliminate commodity programs. By removing government handouts for crops such as corn and soybeans, the CBO estimates we could save nearly $50 billion over the next decade.
- Remove SNAP (formerly known as food stamps) from the Farm Bill. Separating SNAP – which accounts for three-quarters of the Farm Bill package – would allow both policies to pass or fail on their own merits and not use either as bait for passage of the other.
- Privatize crop insurance. Phil would fight to eliminate cronyism in the Farm Bill by taking steps toward privatizing crop insurance. Through crop insurance, the government picks winners and losers instead of the market. Crops, farms, and practices that would not otherwise prosper are supported and encouraged at taxpayer expense. In this corrupt system, taxpayers subsidize 60 cents of every insurance premium dollar; subsidize the corporations that provide the insurance; and then protect the identities of the wealthy corporations who receive the subsidies.
- Eliminate corporate influence. The undue influence of corporations – like Monsanto – has long distorted agricultural policy to serve special interests at the expense of family farms and consumer choice. If elected, Phil would call out this cronyism and expose the ways corporations are controlling congress and in turn our food supply.
Anderson continues “When the government picks winners and losers, taxpayers always lose. In order to really get serious about regaining control of our food, our health, and our economy, we need to first get serious about rooting out the influence of corporate interests in our policymaking. As your senator, I would vow to always put the interests of Wisconsin’s families and hardworking taxpayers first, not wealthy, multi-national corporate donors.”
Phil Anderson is committed to representing the interests of Wisconsin’s farmers and advocating for policies that promote freedom, innovation, and sustainability. For more information about his campaign and policy proposals, please visit AndersonForUSSenate.com .
**About Phil Anderson:**
Phil Anderson is an independent libertarian candidate running for the U.S. Senate from Wisconsin. Anderson is dedicated to promoting liberty, reducing government overreach, and ensuring the prosperity of all Americans.
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