<span style="font-size: larger;">Michigan&rsquo;s Senator Stabenow is working hard to get her Farm Bill passed before the end of this month. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: larger;">She just needs a little cooperation, compromise, and tweaking and then she feels they can pass it.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: larger;">The truth this <span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: rgb(128, 0, 0);"><em><strong>$1,000,000,000,000.00+</strong></em></span></span> Pig needs a serious overhaul.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: larger;">This is who the bill really benefits:</span><br />
<em><strong><span style="font-size: larger;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; - Food stamp recipients are up 70 percent since 2008. (47,800,000 people)</span></strong></em><br />
<em><strong><span style="font-size: larger;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; - Eighty percent of the bill&rsquo;s spending is spent on food stamps.</span></strong></em><br />
<em><strong><span style="font-size: larger;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; - The other 20 percent of the bill contains subsidies and price supports that transfer money to wealthy farmers while raising grocery and tax bills.</span></strong></em><br />
<em><strong><span style="font-size: larger;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; -&nbsp; The average farm household earns 53 percent more than the average U.S. household.</span></strong></em><br />
<em><strong><span style="font-size: larger;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; - Of $17.5 billion paid to farmers annually, 80 percent of that goes to the wealthiest 15 to 20 percent of farmers.</span></strong></em><br />
<em><strong><span style="font-size: larger;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; - Americans pay twice the amount that world consumers pay for sugar due to agricultural price supports.</span></strong></em><br />
<em><strong><span style="font-size: larger;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; - Taxpayers pay $1.1 billion in loans to sugar producers annually.</span></strong></em><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: larger;">&nbsp; The bottom line is that congress needs to get serious about the farm bill and start from scratch. Welfare and subsidies need to be addressed realistically.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: larger;">For an article on Stabenow&rsquo;s perspective on the Farm Bill click on the following link:</span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://thehill.com/blogs/on-the-money/agriculture/195023-stabenow-urges-dairy-compromise-for-farm-bill"><span style="font-size: larger;">http://thehill.com/blogs/on-the-money/agriculture/195023-stabenow-urges-dairy-compromise-for-farm-bill</span></a><br />