PRESBYTERIAN ACTION

The Washington Office of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)
November 5, 2007
This week’s messages are—
The Full Senate Considers the Farm Bill – Call Now!
Ban U.S. Cluster Bomb Use and Export: Today, November 5, National Call-in to the Senate
Congo Global Action Coalition Conference and Lobby Day Cancelled
Isaiah 5:16-17 – The Lord is exalted by Justice
===============================================================
The Full Senate Considers the Farm Bill – Call Now!
The 2007 Farm Bill will be considered on the Senate floor starting today, Monday, Nov. 5, 2007. The bill produced by the Senate Agriculture Committee basically maintains the status quo and therefore falls far short of the reform for which advocates had been hoping. Instead, the Senate's current version of the Farm Bill does the following:
The existing farm payment structure was left mostly intact, ensuring that the largest and most prosperous farms will continue to receive the bulk of farm supports.
U.S. subsidies connecting payment to production, which ultimately hurt farmers in poor countries around the world, were maintained.
Food Stamp benefit levels were indexed for inflation, but not increased to ensure a healthy diet for struggling families and low-income populations.
• Conservation programs were made more available to farmers but funding is insufficient to ensure that all farmers who want to participate in land stewardship programs are able to do so.
Advocates of reform are now moving to an amendment strategy, where pieces of reform will be offered as amendments to the committee bill and voted upon on the Senate floor one at a time. Contact your Senators this week in support of amendments that will accomplish Farm Bill reform. Your input this week is very important!
The shape of the debate still remained nebulous at press time, but one amendment that will certainly be offered, and that is a key component of Farm Bill reform, is a payment limits amendment offered by Senators Dorgan (D-ND) and Grassley (R-IA). If approved by the Senate, this provision would be a meaningful first step in limiting payments and closing loopholes that allow some of the largest farm operations to collect seven-figure government checks each year. The amendment would set a limit of $250,000 for farm payments in an attempt to better distribute farm program payments to small and medium-sized farmers. Reasonable adjustments to payment limits are an important first step toward restoring basic fairness to the farming safety net.
Many more reform-minded amendments to the 2007 Farm Bill are expected to be offered next. Stay tuned at http://capwiz.com/pcusa/home/ for further details as amendments come up throughout the week.
The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) has been working to achieve just reform of the Farm Bill in partnership with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, the Episcopal Church, United Church of Christ, the United Methodist Church, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Bread for the World, Church World Service, and many other faith-based organizations. Such Reform must:
• Ensure support for U.S. farmers who need it most: The Senate should pass a fair commodity title that targets payments to those who need them by enacting strict payment limits while closing loopholes that have permitted some to collect multiple payments.
• Strengthen nutrition, conservation, rural development and food aid programs: The Senate should redirect savings from the improvements to the farm safety net to programs that support people living in poverty and suffering from hunger in the U.S. and around the world.
• Reduce trade-distorting subsidies: The Senate should begin the transition to a modern safety net that helps U.S. farmers effectively manage their risk while reducing the potential for trade distortions that stymie the efforts of families living in developing countries to earn their way out of poverty.
• Facilitate fairer competition among livestock producers: The Senate should vote for reforms to the Livestock / Competition title that will ensure fair competition.
Click http://capwiz.com/pcusa/issues/alert/?alertid=10510651 to send a message to your Senators that you support votes for Farm Bill Reform on the Senate floor.
General Assembly Guidance:
In a 1985 statement, the Presbyterian Church (USA) General Assembly wrote “we believe it is the responsibility and duty of the Federal government to enact a comprehensive, long-term food and fiber policy, with specific price, production and conservation goals designed to protect and enhance family-farm agriculture in the United States … We believe further that this nation must establish a strong system of sustainable agriculture and prevent the continuing concentration of land in the hands of a smaller and smaller number of owners” (Minutes, 1985, p. 399).
Further, in 2002 the 214th General Assembly approved “We Are What We Eat: Recommendations and Report,” which “direct[ed] the Presbyterian Washington Office to continue its advocacy and education in areas of public policy regarding hunger concerns related to economic and food production issues, alert Presbyterians about upcoming public policy related to the agricultural revolution and food production/consumption, [and] encourage members of the PC (USA) to contact legislators urging support of the family farmer/ranchers, farm and processing plant workers, and equitable world trade policy” (Minutes, 2002, p.535).
________________________________________
Ban U.S. Cluster Bomb Use and Export: Today, November 5, National Call-in to the Senate

Cluster bombs are indiscriminate killers that spew deadly shrapnel over large swathes of land at the time of use and leave behind fields of landmines after combat ends. As a result, over the last 40 years the vast majority—98%—of cluster bomb casualties have been civilians.

More than 80 countries have agreed to negotiate a ban on these indiscriminate killers in the coming year. The U.S. government opposes the ban, arguing that the military’s need for these weapons over-rides humanitarian concerns. However, these weapons are even a liability for the military, as the unexploded bomblets impede troop movement and have killed dozens of U.S. soldiers in Iraq.
If you are concerned about cluster bombs, an important priority in the coming year will be the passage of the Cluster Munitions Civilian Protection Act (S.594/H.R.1755). There is a national call-in day on November 5 to urge Senators to co-sponsor S.594. This initiative takes place as part of a broader Global Day of Action on Cluster Bombs, called by the worldwide Cluster Munitions Coalition to help propel the global cluster bomb treaty negotiations.

We invite you to take part. It’s easy. There is a toll-free number (1-800-352-1897), which will allow people to call the Capitol Switchboard for free.
The following is further information that you can use to activate your networks, friends and family for the Nov. 5 National Call in to Ban U.S. Cluster Bombs!

What?
Today! National call-in day to the Senate, urging senators to cosponsor S.594 (the Cluster Munitions Civilian Protection Act). S.594 would substantially restrict both the use and export of cluster bombs by:
1) requiring that they not be used in areas where civilians are known to be present, and
2) requiring that they have a dud rate of less than 1% (meaning that they will leave behind fewer deadly submunitions on the ground after the combat ends).

Why?
Today, November 5, is a Global Day of Action against cluster bombs. People all over the world are taking action to urge the banning of these indiscriminate killers. The call-in day is a chance to let our senators know that there is strong public opposition to these inhumane weapons in the U.S. and strong support for S.594.

When?
Make calls today, November 5, any time. Regular business hours are better, as you will get to talk to a person (instead of leaving a message). Calls on other days are also encouraged but the more we can concentrate on November 5, the better.

How?
Calls to the Senate can be made for free on (800) 352-1897. Callers will automatically be redirected to the Capitol Switchboard. They will need to ask for their Senator by name. (Go to http://capwiz.com/pcusa/dbq/officials/ to find your senators’ names) Once directed to the office, ask for the Legislative Assistant who deals with military and national security issues. Urge them to become a co-sponsor of S.594 and to work for its passage in the coming year.
Message:
• My name is [NAME], and I live in [CITY, STATE].Thanks for taking my call.
• I'm calling to encourage Senator [SENATOR'S NAME] to cosponsor S. 594, the Cluster Munitions Civilian Protection Act. Will that be possible?
• Thank you.
Additional Talking Points:
• Cluster bombs are horrific weapons that are designed to kill all living creatures within the area of several football fields. Because many of the bomblets inside a cluster bomb fail to detonate on impact, this is a weapon that keeps on killing. The cluster bombs that the U.S. dropped 40 years ago in Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam are still killing people today. Overall, 98% of all cluster bomb victims in the last 40 years have been civilians.
• I urge you to support passage of the Cluster Munitions Civilian Protection Act (S.594). This common-sense bill prevents the U.S. military from using cluster bombs in areas where civilians are known to be present. If such weapons are used in combat areas, it requires that they have a “dud rate” of 1% or less—to ensure that a large minefield of deadly bomblets is not left behind. This bill represents a practical solution to a serious humanitarian threat, and it would bring the U.S. into line with the emerging international consensus against the misuse of these highly indiscriminate weapons.
• The Senate took an important step in September, when it included restrictions on exports of cluster munitions in the State Department/Foreign Operations bill. Thank you.
• Now please take the next step. Take a proactive role in protecting civilians. Co-sponsor S.594 today.
General Assembly Guidance:
The General Assembly’s guidelines for military-related investment, adopted in 1982 and most recently revised in 1998, include particular concern over weapons that do not distinguish between combatants and non-combatants. The policy urges divestment from corporations that produce weapons whose use can lead to mass or indiscriminate injury and/or death to civilians, including nuclear warheads, chemical and biological weapons, anti-personnel weapons such as landmines, and assault-type automatic and semi-automatic weapons.
Cluster munitions are the latest military weapon to draw public attention for their indiscriminate nature, both at the time of the initial attack, as well as for the tendency for a portion of the bomb to remain unexploded, in the ground as a hidden ‘landmine.’

________________________________________
The Congo Global Action Coalition Conference and Lobby Day, scheduled for Nov. 11-13, announced in the Witness in Washington Weekly on Oct. 29, 2007, has been cancelled. Stay tuned for rescheduled dates and further details.
________________________________________
Isaiah 5:16-17 – The Lord is exalted by Justice
But the Lord of Hosts is exalted by justice,
And the Holy God shows himself holy by righteousness.
Then the lambs shall graze as in their pasture,
Fatlings and kids shall feed among the ruins.
________________________________________
Help Us Help You!
To support the work of the Washington Office, send a contribution to:
Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)
Individual Remittance Processing
P.O. Box 643700
Pittsburgh, PA 15264-3700.
Designate the Washington Office, ECO # 865714.
Or click here to give online: http://www.pcusa.org/washington/support.htm
Thank You.