Day 3 - Meeting Congressional Representatives and USDA Policy

The day started out with a visit to the President's mansion.  We were honored to indulge in a self guided tour of the White House.  We were able to visit the third and fourth floors of the White House which included the East Room (where the bodies of Abraham Lincoln and JFK laid in state), the Green, Blue, and Red Rooms, and the State Dining Room.  It was a real honor to be in such a historic mansion where so many great leaders have graced the halls.  We saw the oldest painting in the White House of Benjamin Franklin along with many other recent presidents - Ronald Reagan, William Jefferson Clinton, George Herbert Walker Bush, and John Fitzgerald Kennedy.  This was a special experience for the group.

Matt Toste and Cesar Hernandez at USDA

Next, we headed to Capitol Hill to conduct individual group meetings with our Congressional representatives.  We  saw people from Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy to Devin Nunes to staffers from Congressman Tom McClintock and Dennis Cardoza's offices.  It was interesting to hear each office talk on the issues as most people appear to be focused on how to keep the government running over the next 2-3 weeks or so.  Each had a very different perspective on the political gridlock in DC and  why it is being caused.  Some blamed the Tea Party for their "cut at any and all cost approach" while others blamed the "left wing liberals" for their inability to make things happen in the Senate and White House.  A very educational day it was indeed to listen to and understand both sides of the argument.  We also discussed policy and water issues and what the members of Congress are doing to combat our water issues in California.  Each of us were able to exchange contact info with key Congressional staffers that we feel with help us advance the important issues facing California agriculture today.

Mr. James Gore addressing Class 41 at USDA

 Next, we move onto the USDA Whitten Building.  We met with presidential appointee James Gore (Special Assistant to the Assistant Secretary for Administration) along with many other distinguished staff members including Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan, Oscar Gonzalez (Deputy Director of Intergovernmental Affairs), Anne MacMillan (Senior Advisor to the Secretary) and Rebecca Blue (Congressional Relations Confidential Assistant), and Val Dolcini (Acting Administrator Farm Service Agency).  Each of them discussed the mission of the current USDA administration and what the goals were that they are attempting to achieve.  Many of these folks are Californians who should be helping the California agribusiness community become more relevant to the USDA programs and upcoming 2012 Farm Bill legislation.  We covered topics from labor, water, and regulatory issues along with what we can do as members of the California Ag leadership community to get involved with being a part of the solution to solving these problems.  We exchanged contact info whereby a few classmates will be sending emails to a few of these high ranking officials on ideas to improve regulatory and policy issues affecting our industry.  It was very enlightening and powerful to be able to have this kind of access to people who are on the front lines of our regulatory issues.  Now it is on us to follow through with the communication.

Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan at USDA

To cap the night off, we attended a DC Exchange Reception on the USDA's Secretary's Patio hosted by CALP alumni.  We were able to mingle with prospective members of the DC Exchange program and it was a wonderful networking opportunity.  We met a wide array of folks from people involved with International Trade Commission, the State Department, and USDA's APHIS program - to name a few.  This was an excellent networking opportunity for the class which everyone took full advantage of.  It was a fantastic finish to a great second day here in Washington.  Tomorrow we will be getting into more "controversial issues" which should make for some interesting discussion with visits to the Humane Society, a talk on the Obama Administration's Climate Change Policy and Immigration Reform.

- Matt Fisher, Elisabeth Silva, and Stuart Mast