Obama set to make a bad choice for USDA Head

November 20, 2008

Source >

Six Reasons Why Obama Appointing Monsanto's Buddy, Former Iowa Governor Vilsack,

for USDA Head Would be a Terrible Idea

Six Reasons Why Obama Appointing Monsanto's Buddy, Former Iowa Governor Vilsack,

for USDA Head is a Terrible Idea

OCA, November 12, 2008

Nov. 12, 2008

* Former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack's support of genetically engineered

pharmaceutical crops, especially pharmaceutical corn:

* The biggest biotechnology industry group, the Biotechnology Industry

Organization, named Vilsack Governor of the Year. He was also the founder and

former chair of the Governor's Biotechnology Partnership.

* When Vilsack created the Iowa Values Fund, his first poster child of economic

development potential was Trans Ova and their pursuit of cloning dairy cows.

* Vilsack was the origin of the seed pre-emption bill in 2005, which many people

here in Iowa fought because it took away local government's possibility of ever

having a regulation on seeds- where GE would be grown, having GE-free buffers,

banning pharma corn locally, etc. Representative Sandy Greiner, the Republican

sponsor of the bill, bragged on the House Floor that Vilsack put her up to it

right after his state of the state address.

* Vilsack has a glowing reputation as being a schill for agribusiness biotech

giants like Monsanto. Sustainable ag advocated across the country were spreading

the word of Vilsack's history as he was attempting to appeal to voters in his

presidential bid. An activist from the west coast even made this youtube

animation about Vilsack

The airplane in this animation is a referral to the controversy that Vilsack

often traveled in Monsanto's jet.

*Vilsack is an ardent support of corn and soy based biofuels, which use as much

or more fossil energy to produce them as they generate, while driving up world

food prices and literally starving the poor.

Recommended Posts