Bipartisan Consensus

It means there must always be offsetting equivalencies in our discourse, our politics and our policies. In today's example, some rich people are losing billions in government benefits that they don't really need, and because of that, some poor people will have to lose billions in benefits that they do need. Shared sacrifice!

The Senate on Thursday passed a sweeping, $500 billion farm bill that would end direct payments and other subsidies to farmers, while expanding crop insurance and funneling new money to “specialty” crop growers.

The legislation was approved with a rare bipartisan vote, with 64 senators voting for the measure. Thirty-five voted against it.

The five-year measure slashes money from the federal food stamp program, and overall cuts federal spending by about $23 billion over 10 years.

---Vitelius