John Block Reports from Washington

The vision of what the 2007 farm bill and the DOHA Trade Agreement might look like is more clouded than ever.

To start the ball rolling, Trade Ambassador Rob Portman said the U.S. was willing to cut our trade distorting domestic subsidies by 60%. For those of us in farming, that offer made us sit up in alarm. But if market access is great, it might work.

Well, that's when France spoke up and put the European Union on notice that France would not accept the kind of market access that we would demand. So of course, the EU reacting to Pres. Chirac of France, offered a puny 46% reduction in their tariff rates which after analysis appears to be an even punier 39% average cut. Also they insist on protecting a number of "sensitive" products to include beef, poultry, and of course sugar. Then European Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson said, "This is Europe's bottom line."

The Global trade negotiations and our farm bill are joined at the hip.

The U. S. Congress will not give up anything if we cannot get adequate market access. That is our bargaining position. Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Chambliss stated, "The U.S. should agree to reduce trade-distorting supports in exchange for market concessions and warned the administration (Ambassador Portman) that overall farm expenditures should not be reduced in the negotiations." I agree.

I am saying that the agriculture committees will insist that we get market access in exchange for farm program reform or -- no deal.

I had breakfast with Sen. Lugar an old hand as a former chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee. He believes that trade expansion is our best hope but is not pleased with the European position.

Given what I see right now, I don't think the DOHA trade round is going to be revolutionary and so our farm program reform will be evolutionary not revolutionary, as it has been for 40 years.

Until next week, I am John Block from Washington.