The rest of the cotton industry's 95,000 participants have little to show from this sweetheart deal with Washington. In fact, if the majority of America's cotton farmers knew the truth, they would be outraged. The rest were ginners, warehousemen, merchants, crushers, heads of cooperatives, and manufacturers. But cotton isn't food. Besides, worldwide demand for cotton is at record levels.
Cotton prices are higher than they have been at any time since the Civil War.
Like so many government programs, the cotton subsidy, originally intended to help small farmers, has turned into another special-interest boondoggle. Pat Roberts took a courageous stand against corporate special interests who have wrapped themselves over the years in federal largesse, and lost. Now the House Republican leadership should give the Budget Committee a shot at deciding whether American farmers will be set free to compete in world markets, or stay chained to the special interests. John Frydenlund is director of the Agricultural Policy Project at The Heritage Foundation, a Washington-based public policy research institute. Return to The Heritage Foundation's Commentary section.