Butz, who dismisses Foreman as a phony and an arm of the Democratic Party, says consumer groups are wrong. Earl Butz, Secretary of Agriculture under Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford, died this weekend at 98, leaving a colorfully offensive legacy and, thanks to the political correctness of the mainstream news media, a bit of a mystery as to why he's passed with such ignominy. Earl Butz, who was born 105 years ago today, was one of the worst US government officials ever.He was Secretary of Agriculture in the Cabinets of Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford. Heather H. (October 23, 1973). The act granted settlers one hundred and sixty acres of land, which they would own outright on the condition of improvement after five years of homesteading, or could purchase at a low cost after six months. 0000070488 00000 n To ensure bountiful food for the home front and the devastated allied nations, the government implemented price supports on crops. 0000013599 00000 n 0000043800 00000 n Instagram, Follow us on Dean reports that this was Butz's response: I'll tell you what the coloreds want. [3], The Associated Press sent the uncensored quotation over the wire, but the Columbia Journalism Review identified only two city newspapersthe Toledo Blade (Toledo, Ohio) and the Madison Capital Times (Madison, Wisconsin)that published the remark unchanged. And the best way to become a Senator is to get on TV and demagogue the food issue.. 0000057234 00000 n 0000048818 00000 n Popular among farmers, he was known for creating new free-market policies in American agriculture. These policy shifts coincided with the rise of major agribusiness corporations, and the declining financial stability of the small family farm. Earl Butz, who died on Saturday aged 98, served as US Secretary of Agriculture under Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford and courted scandal by telling offensive jokes; he was eventually . Butz decided that America could sell them 10 million tons right away, then embargo further shipments but possibly resume them in September after the effects of this country's drought could he more accurately gauged. 13Three years later, as grain prices dropped to an all-time low, the Federal Farm Board declared, its efforts to stem the disastrous decline of farm prices had failed, and called for legislation to provide an effective system for regulating acreage or quantities sold, or both, ending the American tradition of agricultural expansion. 0000070881 00000 n It must have been satisfying for Butz to watch his vision come to life. I think many educated consumers understand that most farmers often do very poorly financially and have only a small return on their investment. She points to the Secretary's recent creation of an eightmember Agriculture Department advisory committee to evaluate regulaLions affecting the food industry. 0000064816 00000 n During the 60s, livestock, rather than people, became the main consumers of American grain. 0000042932 00000 n And during his tenure he has played a leading policy role in the decisions which sent a disproportionate share of FoodforPeace aid to rightwing governments, including those of South Korea, South VietCambodia and Chile. I was speaking the language of food and they understood.. Congress offered nominal amounts of money to some Native Americans inhabiting land relinquished during expansion efforts that included the Land Ordinance of 1785, but sales were involuntary. Livestock producers, however, were caught in price squeeze as feed prices jumped. Farm income stayed high for most of the decade. Grain farmers are planting fence row to fence row, and the payments to them have nearly stopped. Slate is published by The Slate Group, a Graham Holdings Company. Despite helping to eradicate acute hunger and malnutrition, the bill devastated small farmers and contributed to decreasing the number of farms in America by 63%, effectively changing rural landscapes and economies. The Agriculture and Consumer Protection Act of 1973 (P.L. No. At height of the so-called Green Revolution and firmly in the Cold War mindset, he was referring to the American policy of fighting famine worldwide to defend against political unrest and the spread of communism. 0000048619 00000 n Facebook, Follow us on In the summer of 1972, the Soviets shook up the grain market when it hid from the world the fact that their grain harvest was in trouble. The dust bowl was a fresh memory. In 1973, he reduced the number of acres set aside or taken out of grain production from 25 million acres in 1972 to 7.4 million acres in 73. 0000053344 00000 n 1976-1977. "[11] Through a spokesman, he stated that media outlets had taken this portion of his statement out of their original context, which was that of retelling a joke. Butz . Agriculture and Consumer Protection Act of 1973. According to this reader, Butz was not commenting onPope Paulsmoresweeping opposition to artificial contraception, which rendered his narrower opposition with regard to food shortages a foregone conclusion. analyzed the issue of executive immunity in terms of general policy considerations, and stated its conclusion, quoted supra, in the same universal terms. Earl Butz No, I try not to be a negative thinker. In 1973, Nixon's agricultural secretary, Earl Butz, oversaw a change in the philosophy of the U.S. farm program. Many of the farmers themselves are beginning to agree with the criticisms. Anyone can read what you share. 0000007858 00000 n ), And despite the rise of organic this and local that a trend that annoyed Butz to no end the old campaigners vision of maximum-production agriculture has become more entrenched then ever. Butz, who lived in West Lafayette, Ind., was 98. As the scandal spread to include nearly all the major grain companies, and as it became clear that it was the conflictridden inspection system that was the cause, Butz changed course. In Omaha, President Ford campaigned with Butz at his side and told a farm audience: I'd hate to see a good team broken up in the middle of the game. Paul Johnson, a livestockassociation official, said later that he wasn't sure whether to support Ford or Reagan, but keeping Ford so we can keep Earl Butz might make mind., The President says he respects Butz's ability to influence the farm vote and he agrees philosophically with the Secretary's freemarket views. As their desperation grew, farmers failed to practice sustainable farming methods, which exasperated the Dust Bowl. And in 1971 as now, what agribusiness wanted was for farmers to plant lots and lots of corn and soy. The obituaries for Earl Butz who went to his reward Feb. 2 at the enviable age of 98all note that he will be remembered less for his accomplishments as Agriculture secretary under Presidents. Farm costs, per unit of production, then would rise. Butz resigned his cabinet post on October 4, 1976. It was also epochal. Following World War I, the government revoked wartime price supports and the European market simultaneously recovered, causing agricultural exports to decline by 20% and grain prices to plummet. Donate today to keep our climate news free. Earl Butz. why was it used? 0000042235 00000 n A Cullman, Ala., contract grower whose attempt to organize poultry farmers was crushed by the processors (with some assistance, he charges, from the Agriculture Department) refers to his neighbors as the last slaves in America. Economic studies indicate that poultry farmers are kept in virtual bondage, forced into everincreasing debt as a condition for receiving each new contract from the processors, then working long days raising tens of thousands of companyowned chickens for pennies an hour. 0000050347 00000 n The obituaries for Earl Butzwho went to his reward Feb. 2 at the enviable age of 98all note that he will be remembered less for his accomplishments as Agriculture secretary under Presidents Nixon and Ford than for the two off-color jokes that got him fired. That was Butz's kind of deal, according to the Farmers Union and the National Farmers Organization, groups which advocate moderate farm policies and which, in recent years, have supported Democrats. 0000057015 00000 n D. in agricultural economics (1937) from Purdue University. It's three things: first, a tight pussy; second, loose shoes; and third, a warm place to shit. Butz should be praying for drought right now, says one observer. 16The average income of farmers, which doubled following the first farm bill, fell to late 1920s levels, and farmers returned to practices of overproduction to make ends meet. Then, during President Fords election campaign of 1976, Butz told a racially offensive joke, and he was forced to resign. TimesMachine is an exclusive benefit for home delivery and digital subscribers. Let Them Eat Ketchup In, Roberts, Paul. Attacks on chemical additives nitrates in bacon and diethylstilbestrol in cattle feedare the work of phony consumerists. Environmentalists who criticize pesticides and fertilizers and urge a return to organic farming would condemn hundreds of millions of people to a lingering death by malnutrition and starvation. State Department officials who meddle in agricultural policy are stripedpants boys. And Congressmen who say food prices are too high are demagogues. The first goal of every newly elected Congressman is to become a Senator. Earl Butz: Father of the Modern Food Subsidy System. 0000043465 00000 n The only newsroom focused on exploring solutions at the intersection of climate and justice. Design and build by Upstatement. Pros Of Corn Subsidy. BY TAKA YAMAGUCHI In 1976, then-U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Earl Butz coined the now infamous phrase, "food is a weapon.". 10.How . http://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/historics/USSC_CR_0297_0001_ZS.html, Markham, Jerry W.. New Economic Policy and New York City. In, Levine, Susan. On October 4, 1976, Secretary of Agriculture Earl Butz resigned in the wake of a controversy over an obscene joke he'd made that was derogatory to blacks.You. trailer xref Ronald Reagan notes his continued popularity arming many farmers and frequently praises him in his Midwest campaign speeches. Butz said: "I'll tell you what the coloreds want. Butz encouraged farm production and promoted exports of surpluses. 14. 76-709. 0 An increasingly consolidated meat industry learned to transform cheap grain into cheap but highly profitable burgers, chops, and chicken nuggets. Grist is powered by WordPress VIP. 0000065041 00000 n 0000041223 00000 n Earl Butz stayed on as Secretary of Agriculture after Nixon was impeached and engineered legislation sharply reducing federal subsidies for farmers. [4] He was the uncle of American football player Dave Butz. The man was a creep. On the other hand, heavy exports can lead to. 0000043291 00000 n From February 1993. Jenny Georgieva. So if youre tempted to feel sorry for the guy for getting torn up by historical forces he never understood, give it a rest. US Presidential Cabinet Member. Butz says he was notand is notan enemy of the family farm; he is against the inefficient family farm. (The habit of stuffing the USDA with industry cronies has proven hard to break. 0000060715 00000 n From the Associated Press. 0000069937 00000 n Butz and . Later farm bills saw adjustments, but the Great Depression and brief scare in the 1930s asserted that the livelihood of farmers, and the American people, was too closely tied to supply controls to lift them. Agricultural economics ( 1937 ) from Purdue University points to the Secretary 's recent creation of an Agriculture... Should be praying for drought right now, says consumer groups are wrong cabinet post on 4. Only a small return on their investment, livestock, rather than people, became the main of... 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