mr. lucas: madam speaker, i rise today to claim the agriculture committee's time which i believe i'm sharing with my colleague from minnesota. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. lucas: i yield myself five minutes, madam speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for five minutes. mr. lucas: today, american agriculture is under attack. every day the administration seems to demonstrate just how vastly disconnected it is from the folks who feed us. the administration fails to realize that rural america's economy is dependent on agriculture. the in-your-face approach that the administration has taken regarding regulation has increased the cost of doing business for america's farmers and ranchers. if the administration is allowed to continue down this path, the only choice many farmers and ranchers will have will be to stop farming altogether. from the dairies of vermont to the wheat fields near the chesapeake bay, to the corn fields in the midwest, american

presidential elections that cost the office its license and the always see chairman says little hope mr lucas shango can be talked into changing his mind by the lithuanian foreign minister drawing a sociable as optimistic about the fact economic sanctions can have an immense and his also optimistic about the frozen conflict in the trans. hoping something and finally change for the better. tony minister welcome to the show thank you very much beyond the spotlight my pleasure well. has assumed the chairmanship of the sea and one of the burning issues is. the situation in neighboring neighboring to the twenty also of course to russia where the authorities have shut down the sea office what is your reaction to how we are going to act i doing to try to reopen the course it's our intentions to pursue you before it is. to reopen but we would like to. in this case the office would keep the same meaning for us but it will be this some content not just decoration but to be very frank i do not have very much hope despite what that all countries including russia united states. minsk do not close because

mr. lucas. mr. lucas: this transfer of funds was established as part of an agreement negotiated between the u.s. and brazilian governments. as a result of this agreement, negotiated by the ustr and usda, brazil agreed to suspend retaliation against u.s. exports. if this amendment passes and the funds are not transferred in accordance with the agreement, the u.s. will be in violation of the agreement. brazil would then have the right to immediately impose punitive tariffs on u.s. exports. what mr. kind's amendment does is invite a trade war. the u.s.-brazil agreement is in place only until the 2012 farm bill is completed. this provides an opportunity for the u.s. to determine what adjustments to current law are necessary as a part of the next farm bill to bring the u.s. cotton program into compliance with w.t.o. ruling. this amendment should not be on this bill. it is a policy change. please join me in defeating this amendment. yield back the balance of my time. the chair: the gentleman yields b

. >> mr. lucas? >> thank you, mr. chairman, for holding today's hearing. i will ask congress, i worked with my colleagues on this committee as well as the august culture committee to bring miningful and responsible reform to derivatives regulation. although i was not supportive of the final legislation it is now critical we work together to insure the implementation of title 7 is done right. these new regulations will undoubtedly have a tremendous impact on our country's financial sector and overall economy. as we work our way through the rule making process it is important that the process is accomplished in a thoughtful and transparent manner and that the necessary regulatory certainty be provided for all market participants. i remain concerned that the current timeline for implementation is unrealistic and that more time is needed to adequately implement the law. additionally we must insure that the new rules are consistent with the congressional intent of dodd-frank. i look forward to continuing this discussion and hearing from our witnesses and yield

the chair appoints the gentleman from oklahoma, mr. lucas, to preside over the committee of the whole. the chair: the house is in the committee of the whole house on the state of the union for the consideration of h.r. 1 which the clerk will report by title. the clerk: a bill making appropriations for the department of defense and other departments and agencies of the government for the fiscal year ending september 30, 2011, and for other purposes. the chair: pursuant to the rule, the bill is considered as read the first time. the gentleman from kentucky, mr. rogers, and the gentleman from washington, mr. dicks, each will control 30 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from kentucky. mr. rogers: thank you, mr. chairman. thank you, mr. chairman. i yield myself such time as i may consume. but could we have order, mr. chairman. the chair: the gentleman is correct. the chamber will come to order. the chamber will come to order so that we may proceed. the gentleman from kentucky is recognized. mr. rogers: the continuing resolution on the f

peterson will have an opportunity in working with mr. lucas, the chairman of the ag committee now, on who those witnesses will be who are experts. i don't think we have enough intellectual content because we are not -- we don't spend times on farms. i don't, to where i can make an accurate decision. if i review the transcript and listen to whaps in the committee of jurisdiction, regular order, like the 10 other committees, then it gives us a chance to realisically understand, study, talk about, and receive feed w.a.c. mr. andrews: would the gentleman further yield? mr. sessions: i would yield. mr. andrews: the gentleman makes a very good point about hearings before legislation takes place. how many hearings have there been on the renewal of the patriot act? mr. sessions: i appreciate the gentleman. reclaiming my time. . mr. andrews: you've got time. mr. sessions: reclaiming my time, mr. speaker, i do appreciate the gentleman, this house of representatives after 9/11 debated to the fullest extent not only the issues of the patriot act but we ha

mr. lucas: in fact, if you look at the 2008 farm bill under chairman peterson's leadership, we made significant reforms, yes, cuts in the areas lowering the overall payment cap significantly. but i guess the opponents of farm programs will not be satisfied with that until every last marketing tool has been eliminated. i know it's a popular parlor game in some circles to see how far you can jerk farmers around but making these changes midstream in a five-year farm bill is disruptive to market decisions that producers have made in some cases years ago. all farmers and ranchers want certainty. they plan to work under current law. plain and simple, the author of this amendment wants to change agricultural policy and this debate does not belong in this bill. and i would remind my friends, we today, this week, are a part of a bold, new, open legislative process. maybe that's not how you did it in the past, but when we do this farm bill, it will be done in committee and on the floor in the same open w