Senator Steve Daines today announced he has secured resources for Montana farmers and ranches. The United States senator has stopped closure of critical agricultural research facilities.

“Montana’s farmers and ranchers are some of our state’s most hardworking folks and I’m doing all I can to ensure they have the support they need,” Daines stated.

So, I guess this is good news, I am told. But what is an agricultural research facility and who wanted to close it?

One of the places Daines saved is the Fort Keogh Range and Livestock Research Laboratory is in Miles City. He also saved a Sheep Experiment Station located in Idaho. These places provide critical research and support for Montana’s ranchers and wool growers. These places get hundreds of millions of dollars from Washington and some of the numbers seem high for wool research. I am happy people in Montana will be keeping their jobs, but it's the 21st Century, Don't we know everything there is to know about wool?

Daines is a conservative senator, and my conservative friends are always saying private businesses do things better government programs. If these facilities are so important and needed then if the government stopped funding them wouldn't private industry like farmers and ranches fund the business?

If a person gets money from the government, they call it welfare. Why isn't it welfare when the government gives money to companies who can't seem to make a profit?

Some of the other things the senator has keep funding for:

  • $375 million for the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative.
  • $244 million for Hatch Act formula funding for research at state agriculture experiment stations.
  • $300 million for Smith-Lever programs to support overall extension service activities.

Okay they look important...but millions for wool research? Seems like pork.

Dominick

John Moore, Getty Images
John Moore, Getty Images
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