NFU Blog

From NFU Summer Intern Tyler Fischer

Spending the last couple months in a very busy and exciting, Washington, D.C., has been quite an experience for a small town South Dakotan. I have thoroughly enjoyed it. My time with the National Farmers Union government relations staff has been awesome. It seems surreal that two months have gone by. It seems only a short while ago that I was trying to figure out the metro system and which side of the Capitol was the Senate and which was the House.

During our first week we were encouraged to take on a couple of issues that interested us and follow them during our time here. I went to hearings, briefings and press conferences where I was able to shape informed views on a variety of issues. By helping with the Farm Bill Toolbox I gained a much more in-depth understanding of the farm bill and how it affects many different people and industries. I have enjoyed learning the legislative process and the impact that lobbying organizations can have from firsthand experience.

I believe I will find my experience with NFU invaluable as I enter the agricultural industry workforce. I would like to thank all the NFU DC staff for making this such an interesting and enjoyable internship and Laura Monchuk for informing me of this great opportunity.

From NFU Summer Intern Kale Van Bruggen

On Tuesday, the three interns – Kale Van Bruggen, Mike Stranz and Tyler Fischer - were treated to lunch by Tom Buis and Katy Ziegler at North Dakota Farmers Union’s restaurant, Agraria, located on Washington, D.C.’s Georgetown waterfront.  We were very impressed with the upscale service at the restaurant as well as the “from our fields to your table” theme consistent with the entire dining experience. (more…)

From NFU Summer Intern Mike Stranz

If you’ve watched TV in the past two weeks, you’ve probably seen the commercials from T. Boone Pickens and his plan to address  America’s energy crisis. Pickens, the billionaire Texas oilman, stopped by our office on Capitol Hill yesterday and sat down with NFU President Tom Buis and the government relations staff to pitch his plan.

Much to Pickens’s dismay, the U.S. imports $700 billion worth of oil each year – most of which comes from the Middle East and Africa. He believes that petroleum is at or beyond its maximum production level and that someone needs to steer American fuel choices in a new direction. He suggests that natural gas be used much more intensively in the near future as a transportation fuel and to pin long-term hopes onto wind and solar energy to backfill the needs for electricity production. (more…)

The National Farmers Union Foundation is awarding $500 scholarships to six recipients of the 2008 Stanley Moore Scholarship.

For six weeks the 2008 scholarship recipients will be the weekly member profile.

Ryan Soren is the son of Wayne and Vicki Soren, who have been involved with Farmers Union for more than 25 years. The family has attended every state Farmers Union convention since Ryan was born. He attended local, county, district and state Farmers Union camps as a camper and a counselor. He also earned the SDFU Torchbearer Award and attended NFU All-States Leadership Camp, where he was elected to the National Youth Advisory Council.

He has already earned an associate’s degree in automotive technology and is currently pursuing an associate’s degree in automotive body repair and a certificate in entrepreneurship at the Northeast Community College in Norfolk, Neb. He hopes to one day own his own automotive restoration shop and a small sheep farm in a rural area.

Ryan is from Lake Preston, S.D

From NFU Summer Intern Mike Stranz

On Monday, NFU President Tom Buis appeared on the Fox Business Channel’s Bulls and Bears to discuss commodity prices and their relation to rising grocery prices. Tyler and I got to tag along.

Fox News is in the same building as NFU, so it was only a brisk walk and an elevator ride away.

We were promptly escorted to the green room, where photos of notable politicians (John Kerry, Newt Gingrich, Howard Dean, Condoleeza Rice, Dick Cheney, Mike Huckabee and many more) adorned the walls. News anchors and other guests milled about. Hair care and make up were applied in full force and last minute facts and figures were streaming in. It was quite a scene.

A few minutes before going live, Tom was hustled into a studio with a newsy backdrop and seated before the camera. Tyler and I took up positions in a nearby cubicle with a live feed of the broadcast. The anchors in New York delivered their intro, Tom cleared his throat and we were live.

In all, the segment lasted about only two minutes. Tom fired his shots about how less than 20 cents of every dollar spent on food makes its way back to the farm, energy costs are driving up prices across the board and how farmers are responding effectively to free market pressures. He even noted that popcorn vendors at movie theatres are raising prices and citing higher corn costs – even though anyone who knows anything about agriculture can tell you that popcorn and field corn are two very different commodities. He covered a lot of ground.

If you want to be heard, you must have your sound bites ready to go – especially when you’re live on Fox News. That was today’s lesson.

The National Farmers Union Foundation is awarding $500 scholarships to six recipients of the 2008 Stanley Moore Scholarship.

For the next six weeks the 2008 scholarship recipients will be the weekly member profile.

Cyndi Schumacher, her parents Gary and Kristy Schumacher, and seven siblings, have been active in Farmers Union for the past six years. Cyndi has attended junior day camps, award nights and summer camp, and recently obtained her Farmers Union Torchbearer Award.

In high school, Cyndi has been active in Student Council, Future Business Leaders of America, National Honor Society, volleyball, basketball, track, and band. She was also a vice president of her class for the past two years.

She plans to use the scholarship to help achieve her goal of becoming a first-generation family member to receive a bachelor’s degree. She will be attending Utah Valley State College in Orem, Utah, in the fall to obtain her nursing degree.

Cyndi is from Peetz, Colorado.

The National Farmers Union Foundation is awarding $500 scholarships to six recipients of the 2008 Stanley Moore Scholarship.

For the next six weeks the 2008 scholarship recipients will be the weekly member profile.

Leonard Polzin is the son of George and Marie Polzin, who have been involved with Farmers Union for more than 50 years. Leonard has served on the Wisconsin Farmers Union Resolutions and Bylaws Committees, has participated in a NFU Washington Fly-In, has been a delegate to the NFU Convention and has served as a WFU camp counselor.

Polzin is working on his bachelor’s degree in dairy science with a management emphasis and a minor in agricultural business at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls. He is also involved in several campus groups including the Agricultural Education Society, in which he has served as an officer and on its collegiate debate team. He is an active member of the UWRF Dairy Club, Poultry Club and the honorary agricultural fraternity Alpha Zeta

The National Farmers Union Foundation is awarding $500 scholarships to six recipients of the 2008 Stanley Moore Scholarship.

For the next six weeks the 2008 scholarship recipients will be the weekly member profile.

Kyle Danzinger grew up working on his family dairy farm with his parents Donald and Jackie, who have been involved with Farmers Union for 40 years. He currently serves on the Wisconsin Farmers Union Senior Youth Advisory Council as well as the National Farmers Union Youth Advisory Council.

Danzinger is also very involved with FFA, Student Council, choir, mentoring, Pep-Club, his church youth group and various community service projects.

He will use the NFU Foundation scholarship for tuition and books as he studies agricultural education and dairy science at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls this fall. He plans to become an agricultural teacher at an area high school while operating a small dairy or beef operation on or near his family’s farm.

Kyle is from Durand, Wis.

From NFU DC Summer Intern Tyler Fischer

Last Wednesday we had the opportunity to attend a benefit dinner for the Food Research and Action Center. As interns, Kale and I didn’t know many people at the event but kept perfectly satisfied indulging in mushroom tarts, deep fried artichoke hearts, and my personal favorite, roast beef and crackers. Kale was even brave enough to sample the caviar on a cucumber chip, but judging his reaction I decided to pass.

We then heard a great speech by the Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi. She was followed by three panelists that helped start the fight against world hunger; Daniel Schorr, Roger Wilkins and George McGovern.

I was extremely excited to hear from Mr. McGovern. Being from South Dakota myself, I was familiar with his name and some of his accomplishments including his 1972 presidential run against Richard Nixon.

Following the dinner events, Mr. McGovern was doing a book signing for both he and his wife’s books. I went and introduced myself telling him I was from South Dakota as well. He was happy to see a young face from the state and asked me to stay around to help collect money for his books while he signed them, I agreed. Kale and I spent the next hour or so collecting money and taking pictures of him with buyers. At the end, we gathered his leftover books and carried them to his limo.

I believe I can speak for Kale as well when I say it was a fun-filled, interesting night that really added to our D.C. experience. I don’t foresee soon forgetting the night we got to hang with the Honorable George McGovern.

From NFU DC Summer Intern Kale Van Bruggen

Today I had the opportunity to visit the Senate Gallery and personally watch the Senate consider the farm bill (again) and re-pass it 77-15.  For anyone who has not been to the Senate Gallery, I highly encourage you to go.  I believe it should be on every citizen’s “bucket list.”  Watching the governmental process in that room, I can’t help but think of all the great debates and legislation that has been heard there.  As I was listening to farm bill debate, I found myself thinking back to what the debate was years ago, perhaps in the time of my Grandparents, farming back home in Litchville.

One of the best parts about being a member of this organization is watching how our grassroots efforts operate.  The experience begins on our family farm and hardships faced by my parents. It continues with watching them, along with other members, bring those issues to the county and state conventions, participating in the policy debate with members on both state and the national level, and now working with that policy in the D.C. office.  Today I saw that process go one step further and heard U.S. Senators discussing those same issues that Tyler and I, as interns, have been researching this week.  Experiencing each of those steps has been a powerful motivator for me and I am thankful that I have been granted this opportunity.