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Letter -- Dille's remarks about LSP were deeply disappointing Tuesday, June 14, 2005
I was disappointed to read Sen. Steve Dille's remarks about the Land Stewardship Project in the June 2 edition of Agri News.
In the article, Sen. Dille says he would have worked for funding for sustainable agriculture if LSP had agreed to stop the parts of their work he disagrees with.
Sen. Dille is certainly a strong advocate of agriculture and I consider him a friend. However, on this point we disagree. Our power as state legislators is entrusted to us to pass policy that is best for the citizens of Minnesota, not to try to silence groups that we disagree with, no matter how strongly.
Disagreement and debate is a vital part of a healthy democracy. So while Sen. Dille has every right to disagree with LSP, it is not an appropriate tactic to block legislation that would help family farmers and rural Minnesota in an effort to silence the advocacy rights of an organization that works for small family farmers.
In the article, Sen. Dille suggests LSP is to blame for the lack of funding for sustainable agriculture.
In fact, LSP has been a leader in our state in working for funding of programs that benefit family farmers and sustainable agriculture. Sen. Dille is inaccurate when he says that LSP left $2.5 million on the table for sustainable agriculture because they would not go along with his effort to silence their advocacy.
There is no money "on the table.''
Many good programs are going unfunded and rural Minnesota is hurting as a result. If anything the governor's budget is the cause of this, not LSP nor Sen. Dille.
Sen. Dille is the lead author of Gov. Pawlenty's livestock siting bill, a bill many farm and environmental groups oppose because they believe it undermines township local control. When he presented it to the Environment Policy Committee on which I serve, I offered an amendment to provide written notice to the township and nearby residents of a proposed feedlot over 500 animal units.
While Sen. Dille recognized that an improved notice requirement was good public policy, he asked the committee not to pass it because LSP supported it and he wanted to use it as a bargaining chip in his attempt to silence them. That was an unconvincing argument and the amendment did pass.
LSP has done important work in Minnesota in promoting family farms and sustainable agriculture. I rely on their input to help me make informed decisions about state agriculture policy.
It is apparent Sen. Dille disagrees with some of LSP's positions, which is certainly his right and part of our vibrant policy-directed effort to get the most informed public policy.
But in a democracy, the appropriate action to take is to counter with strong policy arguments, not try to silence those who disagree with you.
-- Sen. John Hottinger, DFL, Mankato, MN |
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