Gramm Tries to Balance View on Farm Subsidies, Welfare

On a presidential campaign swing through California’s agricultural heartland Saturday, Republican Sen. Phil Gramm of Texas tried to reconcile his harsh criticism of welfare programs for the poor with his strong support of government assistance to wealthy farmers.

When asked about so-called corporate welfare for agriculture, Gramm said farmers needed to reduce their reliance on government subsidies.

“I’m in favor of moving toward greater reliance on the market in agriculture,” Gramm told 125 ardent supporters before leaving for a fund-raiser in Los Angeles.

“My goal is to make rural America the best place to make a living. And I don’t think government programs can do that.”

One wealthy suburb in Fresno--far from the region’s cotton fields--receives more federal crop subsidy checks than any other area in the country.

While not backing away from his support of government assistance to corporate farmers, Gramm said such payments would not be necessary if trade barriers were removed.

“We need to force our trading partners to open up their markets,” he said. “Half the world doesn’t know the joys of cotton underwear.”

A cornerstone of Gramm’s presidential bid has been a call for balancing the budget and reforming Aid to Families With Dependent Children, the nation’s chief welfare program.

But his attacks on welfare for the poor have opened him up to criticism that he is advocating something else entirely for the country’s cotton, corn, rice and tobacco farmers.

He tried to strike a more balanced view Saturday in this richest farm belt in the country.

“If we’re going to balance the budget, then we’re going to have less money to spend on price supports,” he said. “We need to do [reform] in such a way as to not bankrupt people who’ve got a big mortgage on their land or big payments on their equipment.”

For most of his 30-minute appearance, Gramm delivered his standard campaign speech. Although he did not criticize rival Sen. Bob Dole directly, Gramm described himself as the true bearer of the Reagan torch.

“Fourteen years ago, I was a foot soldier in the Reagan revolution,” he said. “And as President, I want to finish the Reagan revolution.”