Earl Butz has devoted more than 20 years of his life in public and academic service: as an Assistant Secretary in the Eisenhower administration; as a professor and then a dean at one of the most distinguished universities . [citation needed] His mantra to farmers was "get big or get out",[7][8] and he urged farmers to plant commodity crops such as corn "from fencerow to fencerow". Changes in farming supported by government policy especially over the last century have incentivized farmers to grow crops that are easy to ship, store, and processnamely cereal grains and sweetenersensuring these foods are inexpensive and widely available. 0000008903 00000 n On the other hand, heavy exports can lead to domestic shortagesand rises in consumer food prices, as they, indeed, did in 1972. 0000018904 00000 n S]?r@ Occasionally the digitization process introduces transcription errors or other problems; we are continuing to work to improve these archived versions. 0000050347 00000 n They pointed out that he was leaving the board of Ralston Purina Company to become Secretary of Agriculture, while Hardin was departing the Agriculture Department to become vice chairman of the same firm. Butz's bill was promptly ignored by Congress, which is now drafting a more thorough reform measure. He believed that a free, global market would bring higher prices, and for the few years that Russian agriculture struggled, he was right. [3], The Associated Press sent the uncensored quotation over the wire, but the Columbia Journalism Review identified only two city newspapersthe Toledo Blade (Toledo, Ohio) and the Madison Capital Times (Madison, Wisconsin)that published the remark unchanged. The deal came at the same time as the Nixon administration was trying to ease tensions between the worlds two super powers (at that time) and to bolster U.S. farm income to help win that years presidential election. (For a blunt account of the farm-crisis period, see Osha Gray Davidsons 1996 classic Broken Heartland: The Rise of Americas Rural Ghetto.). For a few years, those actions seemed like a good business decision. Since the pope doesnt engage in sexual intercourse (da game), he has no right to tell other peoplewhether they mayuse contraception or not when they engage in sexual intercourse (da rules). Marshall Martin discusses policy with Earl Butz. As their desperation grew, farmers failed to practice sustainable farming methods, which exasperated the Dust Bowl. While somewhat dated, this work is unique in that it comes from the source. 12The Agricultural Marketing Act of 1929, like the Agricultural Credits Act of 1923, sought to resolve low prices through the distribution of loans, but similarly failed to regulate supply and demand. It must have been satisfying for Butz to watch his vision come to life. [29] He is buried at the Tippecanoe Memory Gardens in West Lafayette, Indiana. document.getElementById( "ak_js_2" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Industrial agriculture lost one of its greatest champions last week: Earl Rusty Butz, secretary of the USDA under Nixon. Earl Butz: Father of the Modern Food Subsidy System. Left unregulated, agricultural policy has proved to be as catastrophic as well as instrumental culturally, economically, and environmentally. Valuating is itself the value and jewel of all valued things. Dr. Butz graduated from Purdue University with a B.S. A Cullman, Ala., contract grower whose attempt to organize poultry farmers was crushed by the processors (with some assistance, he charges, from the Agriculture Department) refers to his neighbors as the last slaves in America. Economic studies indicate that poultry farmers are kept in virtual bondage, forced into everincreasing debt as a condition for receiving each new contract from the processors, then working long days raising tens of thousands of companyowned chickens for pennies an hour. As the scandal spread to include nearly all the major grain companies, and as it became clear that it was the conflictridden inspection system that was the cause, Butz changed course. 0000044995 00000 n The companies were allowed to defer payment for many months at no interest, and the Government stored the grain for them at no charge. . High Agriculture Department officials began refusing to answer questions relating to grain sales to Russia and to Eastern European countries, saying sareastically that the diplomats had taken over. 0000062275 00000 n This program had unsuccessfully attempted to prevent a national oversupply of corn and low corn prices. [3], Butz was an alumnus of Purdue University, where he was a member of Alpha Gamma Rho fraternity. Earl Lauer "Rusty" Butz (July 3, 1909 - February 2, 2008) was a United States government official who served as Secretary of Agriculture under Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford. He also came up with a weakly worded proposal to Congress to strengthen criminal penalties and minimize conflict of interest in inspection agencies, some of which had been owned by the same grain firms whose products they inspected. Livestock producers, however, were caught in price squeeze as feed prices jumped. It later was shown that, with help from Continental officials, Palmby was making arrangements for establishing his residence in New York, where Continental's headquarters is, even before he went to Russia. a. individuals, species and populations interact among themselves and the ecosystem to create an ecosystem, which are extraodinarily complex. Secretary Earl Butz was the was the Secretary of Agriculture during President Nixon ' s term . But Butz did forcefully equate the interests of agribusiness with the national interest. As usual, the country dealers and farmers of Iowa got the short end of the stick, says former Iowa Senator Harold Hughes. 0000008682 00000 n He received a Bachelor of Science degree in Agriculture in 1932, and then a doctorate in Agricultural Economics in 1937. Earl Butz has restored grain farmers pride in proving their enormous productive potential, and they love him. The New Deal policymakers had seen how high-production agriculture could devastate lands productivity. Earl Butz, 2006. ), To support our nonprofit environmental journalism, please consider disabling your ad-blocker to allow ads on Grist. And the best way to become a Senator is to get on TV and demagogue the food issue.. 0000000016 00000 n 0000071060 00000 n One of his aides calls him an encyclopedia of funny stories, many of which, naturally, have to do with farmers; such as: I saw this farmer, and I asked him, What's your hobby? He said, Farming. I said, What would you do if you inherited a million dollars? He said, I'd keep on farming as long as the money lasted. His jokes have occasionally gotten him into troublelike the one in which he ridiculed the Pope's stand against artificial birth control by saying: He no playa da game; he no makea da rules. The remark brought a storm of protest from Catholics and ItalianAmericans, and resulted in one of Butz's rare apologies. 9As prices of agricultural commodities soared, farmers maximized production to increase their profits. Following World War I, the government revoked wartime price supports and the European market simultaneously recovered, causing agricultural exports to decline by 20% and grain prices to plummet. Earl Butz, who served as Secretary of Agriculture under presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford, is widely regarded as a pioneer in modern American corn policy because he emphasized selling . document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); A nonprofit, independent media organization dedicated to telling stories of climate solutions and a just future. 0000068943 00000 n Your support keeps our unbiased, nonprofit news free. Farm income has shot up from $14 billion in 1970 to $26 billion now, and even after these figures are adjusted for inflation, they still reflect a nearly 20 percent increase. Anyone can read what you share. 0000043465 00000 n 0000063920 00000 n How does corn get in your hair King corn? Earl L. Butz, Self: King Corn. 0000067068 00000 n Friedrich Nietzsche. The McGovern US Senate Select Committee on Nutrition and Human Needs releases its Dietary Goals for the United States. In 1972, the Soviet Union, suffering disastrous harvests, purchased 30 million tons of American grain. In 1973, he reduced the number of acres set aside or taken out of grain production from 25 million acres in 1972 to 7.4 million acres in 73. Earl L. Butz, the outspoken U.S. Agriculture secretary forced from office in 1976 for making a racist joke, died Saturday morning. Top 10 Earl Butz Quotes (2023 Update) - Quotefancy Top 10 Earl Butz Quotes (2023 Update) 1. He envisioned a hyper-efficient, centralized food system, one that could profitably and cheaply feed the world by manipulating (or adding value to) mountains of Midwestern corn and soy. Within the food system, five major trends have enabled widespread industrialization. The analysis presented in that case cannot be limited to . Earl Butz I made lots of talks and challenged lots of people. His only real friends are the big farmers, and, if this summer's expected bumper crop on the Great Plains affects their income as some anticipate, he may soon lose them, too. Earl Butz has been and continues to be a close personal friend and a man who loves his country and all that it represents. http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/bdsdcc:@field(DOCID+@lit(bdsdcc, Dimitri, Carolyn, Anne Effland, and Neilson Conklin. Get big or get out, he routinely thundered. " Earl Butz 3. The department's lax supervision of the grain exporters should have been known to Butz, because in the early 1970's the entire focus of expanding agricultural trade was on grain. Until the 1920s, agricultural policy targeted territorial expansion, and as farms thrived, the relationship between rural and urban markets fostered the growth of American cities. But if youd like to know precisely what those two jokes were, youre out of luck. 0000050911 00000 n It is possible, too, that domestic food prices would drop, although, because of the middleman factor, that is far from certain. 0000009377 00000 n Earl Butz. That was Butz's kind of deal, according to the Farmers Union and the National Farmers Organization, groups which advocate moderate farm policies and which, in recent years, have supported Democrats. 0000047333 00000 n 3 Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window). Ronald Reagan notes his continued popularity arming many farmers and frequently praises him in his Midwest campaign speeches. He was the uncle of NFL defensive tackle Dave Butz, an All-American at Purdue University and All-Pro with the St. Louis Cardinals (1973-74) and Washington Redskins (1975-88). But the ag policies of the day encouraged restraint. Butz said: "I'll tell you what the coloreds want. Current agricultural policy has proved this as well, as America can no longer sustain the health and environmental implications of subsidy fueled factory farms. Earl Butz Ford was warm and friendly. 0000063406 00000 n 1973 Farm Bill - Agricultural and Consumer Protection Act [As Amended Through P.L. The Earl L. Butz file group documents the activities of the Office of the Counsellor to the President for Natural Resources from its inception in January of 1973 until its functions were subsumed by Governor John Love's Energy Policy Office in the summer of 1973. See more from The Dust Bowl. Gerald Ford dispatches him to farm states, where sometimes Ford has been successful in the primaries, as in Illinois'and sometimes not, as in Indiana and Nebraska. Author: Earl L. Butz The American Food Machine and Private Entrepreneurship Earl L. Butz | December 1977 The modern American Food Machine is perhaps the greatest single source of strength undergirding the unparalleled level of American living. So he dangled the promise of foreign trade as a panacea. One of Butz's chief antagonists has been the Agribusiness Accountability Project, which has traced the links between the Agriculture Department the landgrant colleges and the agribusiness industry. Butzs great policy change had given rise to the deepest rural crisis since the Depression. While farmers scrambled to get big or get out, Butzs beloved agribusiness giants cheered. To read Franklin D. Roosevelts Statement on Signing the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938, click here. The establishment of farmland allowed for urban economies to flourish and more people to live in cities, and provided both food and work for Americas rapidly expanding population. xref 4, Land policy that targeted territorial expansion built an American agriculture empire, but at the expense of Native American populations. 0000055231 00000 n Yet the food-production machine Butz created kept cranking. I mustadmit that this interpretation, which eluded me for 34 years, is much more in keeping with a sense of humor animated by the loose-shoes joke and by a sculpture of two copulating elephants. They went heavily into debt to finance their expanded operations. He said, I make no apology for my desire to raise farm prices.. Yet Earl Lauer Butz is often referred to these days as the greatest Secretary of Agriculture in the history of the Republic. 0000065262 00000 n Slate is published by The Slate Group, a Graham Holdings Company. Earl Butz I challenged things that needed to be challenged at Purdue. 0000016123 00000 n He took his first federal post, as assistant agriculture secretary under President Dwight Eisenhower, serving 1954 to 1957. 0000055617 00000 n 0000044805 00000 n The nomination proved to be Nixon's most controversial for two main reasons. http://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/ourdocs/Homestead.html, The Library of Congress. At one time, he headed the Purdue Department of Agriculture. The government would also buy excess grain from farmers and store it. 0000055830 00000 n Assuming the readers interpretation is correct, Butzs pope jibe was at the very least a much nastier and more personal insult than I realized.]. 0000051337 00000 n The 20th Century Transformation of U.S. Agriculture and Farm Policy. United States Department of Agriculture. Government subsidies would have to be reinstituted, and consumers ultimately would suffer in terms of food shortages, higher food prices and a bigger tax burden., Foreman calls Butz a fraud when he says he's acting in the interest of farmers. 0000065041 00000 n The "Great Grain Robbery" was not really a robbery, but it was a major turning point in the history of agricultural monitoring.. The Agriculture and Consumer Protection Act of 1973 (P.L. The Secretary tells American farmers that high price guarantees, or supports, would lead you backward to the days when Government controls dictated what you planted and how much, and in the long run, lead to overproduction. 24 Since subsidized crops are less expensive, and therefore more sought after, farmers who grew subsidized crops saw the most success, while those who did not fell behind. 0000010640 00000 n Eating for Strength . In, Pollan, Michael. I got a royal welcomenot because I was Secretary of Agriculture. What policy did Earl Butz promote in 1973? But the Times description of Butzs two fatal wisecracks, like the APs, eschewed direct quotation. In 1954, he was appointed Assistant Secretary of Agriculture by President Dwight D. Eisenhower. He wanted all this done without fanfare but lost control when Federal Reserve Chairman Arthur Burns predicted the sales would drive American food prices higher. He rejected criticism that these ties might compromise his performance as USDA chief. 0000070488 00000 n 0000042749 00000 n 0000018253 00000 n 0000056225 00000 n Despite helping to eradicate acute hunger and malnutrition, the bill devastated small farmers and contributed to decreasing the number of farms in America by 63%, effectively changing rural landscapes and economies. Yet his legacy still thrives, and will not likely die as gently as the man. 7. After forty years of regulating production to balance demand, domestic and international circumstances compelled President Richard Nixon to rethink agricultural policy. I recognize that family-oriented news organizations like the AP and the Times do not publish words they know to be coarse and deeply insulting to particular ethnic groups, nationalities, and religions. 0000009251 00000 n 0000046621 00000 n 2027, 36 L.Ed.2d 912 (1973). 0000013599 00000 n Farm incomes plunged and tens of thousands of farms went under. Today Earl Butz would be 113 years old. Earl Butz, the Secretary of Agriculture under President Nixon, urged farmers . 0000054849 00000 n [4] He was the uncle of American football player Dave Butz. 0000044482 00000 n Susan Demarco, one of the founders of the project says, Secretary Butz is not the friend of the family farmers; he is their funeral director. In its report, Hard Tomatoes, Hard Times. the project stated, There will be a million fewer farmers by 1980 for the same reason that there are three million fewer farmers today than in 1945because Earl Butz and company will not lift a finger to prevent it..
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