John Block Reports from Washington

Congress is coming backand it would be nice if they would sit down and get something done.Their approval rating is a dismal 18%. As low as President Bush'srating is, it's still almost twice that of our Congress.

Congress can start bycompleting the Corps of Engineers Locks and Dam bill. We have a lotof grain to ship on our inland water system. Next, the Senate needsto concentrate on writing a farm bill now that the House has shownthe way. Also, work needs to be done on the Immigration legislation.Even if we can't pass a comprehensive bill, we need some certaintythat we can get the labor we need to do the work -- butcher the hogs,pick the strawberries, build the houses. We don' t want to outsourceour Ag industry to other countries.

I hope the Congress gotthe message during the August break. Go to work!

Calculating every voteon how many political points can be scored is not what we electedthem for. They are pathetic. Not only did they fail on Immigrationlegislation, they have not been able to muster one ounce of courageto deal with the runaway cost of Social Security, Medicaid, andMedicare. At least President Bush tried, but the Congress has beenafraid to touch those entitlement programs. I would hope that ourPresidential candidates can be forced to detail some solid realisticsolutions.

I talked earlier aboutthe need we have in this country to do a lot of the hard and dirtywork. This is Labor Day weekend. My hat is off to the hard-workingmen and women that keep the wheels turning. I'm not talking about thecorporate executives or lawyers or the high-powered professionals. Weneed them. We need everyone. But the big professionals would getnothing done if it weren' t for the millions of worker bees --someone to fix your washing machine, someone to plow the snow, andcan the tomatoes, grow the sweet corn, build the barn, manufactureour tractors or cars. Millions of dedicated workers -- not gettingrich, but putting food on the table for their family. That's U.S.A.-- still a melting pot of men and women in a free economy, working toget ahead. And in the process, showcasing our country as the envy ofthe world.

Have a great Labor Day.I am John Block -- next week, down on the farm.