Free Republic

National Farmers Union (NFU) submitted comments to Thomas Yager of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) about a possible reinterpretation of the Motor Carrier Act of 1935, the Motor Carrier Safety Act of 1984, and the Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1986. The FMCSA is exploring the possibility of categorizing "implements of husbandry and other farm equipment" as commercial motor vehicles, thus requiring a commercial driver's license (CDL) to operate. "Most farmers have little, if any, control or knowledge of the final destination of the commodities they produce," said NFU President Roger Johnson. "As such, it is inappropriate...

Three names have emerged in the first round of speculation about who will be the secretary of agriculture in an Obama administration: National Farmers Union President Tom Buis, former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack and House Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin Peterson. Before joining the NFU, Buis was the senior agricultural aide to former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle and worked as legislative director for Rep. Jim Jontz, D-Ind. In the 1980s, he was a grain and livestock farmer in Indiana with brothers Mike and Jeff, who continue to operate the family farm. Vilsack served two terms as governor of Iowa before...