Farm Group Backs Bork Nomination to Supreme Court
The nation’s largest farming organization endorsed the nomination of Judge Robert H. Bork for the Supreme Court, the first time in its history the group has advocated a judicial candidate, a spokesman said Wednesday.
The 24 board members of the American Farm Bureau Federation, which represents more than 3.5 million rural families, met Tuesday in Park Ridge, Ill., to discuss President Reagan’s nomination of Bork.
“We were getting requests from farmers to consider doing this,” federation President Dean Kleckner said Wednesday in announcing the decision to endorse Bork.
Kleckner said White House Chief of Staff Howard H. Baker Jr. visited with board members Tuesday during their meeting and “talked mostly about Judge Bork.”
“In looking at Judge Bork’s record, the board of directors concluded the nominee is an eminently qualified jurist,” Kleckner said.
“Farmers are as much affected by judicial decisions as any other citizens,” he added. “As farmers, we see the need to stand up and be counted this time.”
The Senate Judiciary Committee is scheduled to begin Bork’s confirmation hearings on Sept. 15.
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