McConnell has a tough row to hoe

Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is in a familiar place on the farm bill — keeping silent on his position until the last minute.

The Senate’s minority leader intends to vote for the bill, but has done little to publicize his stance — just as the Kentuckian wouldn’t reveal his position on an earmark moratorium earlier this year, a key immigration vote in 2007 and pending Medicaid regulations that many governors oppose.

{mosads}McConnell’s silence is problematic for those who want the GOP leader to take a stronger stand with his party counterparts. House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) and President Bush, for example, are against the farm bill.

But there’s a lot at stake for McConnell. He faces a difficult reelection this year back home and the Bluegrass State stands to benefit from a $489 million tax break package for the thoroughbred industry.

“We’re asking all of our congressional delegation to support passage, and ‘all’ certainly means Sen. McConnell,” said Marshall Coyle, president of the Kentucky Farm Bureau.

McConnell declined to comment for this story, but late Wednesday his spokesman said he would vote for the farm bill. His GOP Senate colleagues say their leader’s silence is appropriate, especially for issues that fractured Republicans, such as farm subsidies and guest workers.

“I think that’s a sign of a good leader,” said Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.). “He’s not trying to influence the membership at large. On the issues where there’s not a conference position, Sen. McConnell is very controlled about influencing us.”

Larry Hart, director of government relations for the American Conservative Union (ACU), sympathizes with McConnell’s dilemma.

“It’s certainly very important from our point of view that Sen. McConnell help lead the Republicans, which he does on some issues and perhaps does not on others,” Hart said. “On the other hand, when there’s a split, he has to respect that.”

McConnell received a 92 percent rating from the ACU, Hart added, a gold standard.

Still, McConnell often keeps his positions quiet. In March, he didn’t announce his support of a ban on congressional earmarks until 11 p.m. — after the vote failed. Some thought the ban could have passed if he had spoken up sooner.

{mospagebreak}His caginess has also created awkward situations. Last year, for example, he stood behind Bush when the president came to Capitol Hill to revive a foundering immigration bill. McConnell later voted against it, helping GOP critics defeat Bush’s priority.

Medicaid regulations are another challenge for him. The emergency war-spending bill contains legislation that would block seven cost-cutting regulations. Many governors are pressing their delegations to support the legislation because they dislike the regulations. The Bush administration supports the cost cutting, while Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) wants to block the bill. McConnell, so far, has again avoided an explicit stance, but offered tepid support for Grassley.

{mosads}On the farm bill, his past support has been inconsistent — he voted for the Senate version of the farm bill in December, but against the last farm bill in 2002.

Voting records compiled by the American Farm Bureau Federation show McConnell has rarely strayed from the AFBF line. He supported the lobby on all nine of its legislative priorities in 2005, 15 of 17 in 2006 and three of six in 2007.

“He’s great. He’s wonderful,” said AFBF lobbyist Mary Kay Thatcher. “We’ve got a small number of people that we call friends of the Farm Bureau each year, and he’s certainly one of them.”

The Bluegrass State is home to 84,000 farms — fourth in the U.S. — that span 13.8 million acres, with the equine industry, cattle, tobacco and corn the state’s top crops, according to the Kentucky Farm Bureau.

Coyle sent a letter Monday to Kentucky’s congressional delegation, calling swift passage of the bill “critical” to the state and urging an override of a Bush veto.

Coyle said McConnell’s 2002 vote against the last farm bill was an anomaly.

“We all realize the ’02 bill worked better than some people thought it would,” Coyle said. “I firmly believe the senator will look at this bill differently.”

The thoroughbred tax break would revise tax laws that calculate how racehorses are depreciated. National Thoroughbred Racing Association President and CEO Alex Waldrop specifically saluted McConnell for the provision in a May 8 statement, saying the provision “will provide enormous economic incentives to the horse racing and breeding industry.”

Sen. John Ensign (Nev.), chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, also said McConnell has been a “great counter-puncher” in the political tug-of-war with Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.).

“Being a leader in the Senate is one of the most difficult jobs,” Ensign said. “Some of us just disagree sometime. You could say that he’s very contemplative.”

Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.), who sits on the Agriculture Committee, said issues like the farm bill attract division within conferences since senators often disagree based on regional differences.

“What you have to do sometimes is choose between what leadership is asking and what you need to do for your state and your constituents,” Nelson said. “His position is particularly difficult because he’s part of leadership.”