Thread: FARM SUBSIDIES ARE GOING TO GROUPS IN…THE CITY OF CHICAGO — INCLUDING ONE ASSOCIATED

WAIT UNTIL YOU HEAR HOW MANY FARM SUBSIDIES ARE GOING TO GROUPS IN…THE CITY OF CHICAGO — INCLUDING ONE ASSOCIATED WITH LOUIS FARRAKHAN

Dec. 9, 2013
11:00pm Becket Adams

Between 2008 and 2011, the U.S. government awarded roughly $6.12 million in federal farm subsidies to several groups in the Chicago area, including a charity owned by Louis Farrakhan’s The Nation of Islam, according to a report released by government watchdog group Open the Books.

The Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan (Getty Images)

The report, titled “Farm Subsidies and the Big Dogs,” is based on data released by the U.S. Department of Agriculture & information obtained through the Freedom of Information Act. The report examines total farm subsidies that have been paid into selected cities and urban areas.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, federal farm subsidies are being poured into several non-farming metropolitan areas, including New York City and Chicago, according to the report.

Several entities in Chicago, for example, “receive the federal subsidies at their downtown loop office buildings or residential mansions,” the report reads. “Nearly every neighborhood in the city receives federal farm subsidy payments — including the Gold Coast, Downtown — Loop, Lincoln Park, and even the President’s neighbors in Hyde Park.”

A total of 930 entities in the Chicago area received farm subsidies between 2008 and 2011.

And as for the Louis Farrakhan group: Three Years Economic Savings, Inc., which is listed at his home address, received approximately $103,529 between 2008 and 2011, making it the 12th highest farm subsidy recipient in the Chicago area.

The entity’s status is listed on the Illinois Secretary of State website as being “not good standing,” the Open the Books reported. But the Three Years Economic Savings’ website,muhammadfarms.com, is still accepting donations.

The group also received a $26,357 “commodity loan” during the Bush administration “to improve & stabilize farm income, assist with a better balance between supply and demand of the commodities,” the report notes.


This loan was signed on Nov., 17, 2008.

The group’s estimates of farm subsidy payments are based on several data points including crop subsidies, conservation & wetland reserve subsidies, diary & livestock subsidies, & environmental quality incentive programs.

Of all Illinois municipalities receiving federal farm subsidies, Chicago is ranked number seven, according to the report. And of all states receiving federal farm subsidies, Illinois is ranked number three.

A map showing just some of the locations in the city of Chicago receiving farm subsidies. (Source: Open the Books)

But if you think the situation in Chicago is suspicious, keep in mind what’s happening there is only a snapshot of what’s going on nationwide with federal farm subsidies.

“Billions in U.S. Farm Subsidies flowed to only 10,806 Recipients — each receiving at least $250,000” between 2008 and 2011, the report notes. “Each received an (average) of $417,316.”

This would seem to imply that a lot more than farming is being subsidized by the federal government.

“(F)arm subsidies today have nothing to do with ‘preserving the family farm,’” the report reads, adding that small family farms between 2008 and 2011 received only a small fraction of federal subsidies.

“Wealthy investors have piggy-backed on a growing government program and made the largess of farm subsidies part of their investment portfolio. Many of these wealthy investors don’t live in ‘rural areas,’ but instead utilize ‘farm managers’ and taxpayer dollars to maximize return on their ‘farm’ investments,” the report notes.

But, again, this shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise. Media outlets have reported for years that a very small (but elite) group of recipients take the lion’s share of the billions paid out each year by Uncle Sam. Indeed, roughly 10 percent of total recipients account for nearly 74 percent doled out annually.

The Open the Books report adds this final thought: “Traditionally, farm subsidies have been Republican pork while Democrats had the food stamp subsidies to pass out to their base. Both programs were bound together and passed with substantial support. However, this year the House Republicans separated the bills. This year, in theory, reform is possible.”
You can see the full report here:

Click here to read more about federal farm subsidies.
(H/T: Jim Hoft)

8 Things to Watch for in the Farm Bill

Rachel Sheffield and Daren Bakst
December 9, 2013 at 5:22 pm

Federico Gambarini/dpa/picture-alliance/Newscom

The House and Senate are working out differences between their farm bills. The following is a list of major questions to consider if the negotiators do come up with a farm bill (explained in this new report here):

1. Will Congress continue to play politics with the farm bill by combining food stamps with farm programs? For political reasons, Congress has combined the food stamp and agriculture programs in a massive farm bill for years. The only way for real reform is to separate these programs into two bills. At the least, a new farm bill should stagger the programs’ reauthorization periods, effectively separating them and making later reform more likely.
2. Will food stamp reform be fiscally responsible or irresponsible? Food stamp spending has been climbing for years, doubling between fiscal year (FY) 2000 and FY 2007 and then doubling again to about $80 billion by FY 2012. The growth is partly due to the recession but also due to bad policy. A farm bill that does not include even the House’s modest reductions would be fiscally irresponsible and would mean that the House rejected much-needed reforms.
3. Will Congress continue to promote dependency instead of empowering Americans? A work requirement is central to food stamp reform. Able-bodied adults should be required to work, prepare for work, or at least look for work in exchange for receiving food stamps. This promotes self-sufficiency and human dignity.
4. Will Congress turn a blind eye to food stamp abuses? Problematic loopholes are undermining the food stamp program. “Broad-based categorical eligibility,” for example, allows states to bypass asset tests for applicants. A loophole known as “Heat and Eat” lets states artificially boost the amount of food stamp benefits a household receives.
5. Will Congress avoid dealing with controversial programs in the future? Most agriculture programs are authorized for five years. But the House bill extends the problematic sugar program and two other new agriculture programs for unspecified amounts of time. With no set reauthorization period, Congress is less likely to deal with these problematic programs in the future.
6. Will taxpayers get stuck with massive liability while wealthy farmers receive almost unlimited protection? The amount of subsidies provided in the new shallow-loss and target-price programs are contingent on commodity prices. If prices collapse, taxpayers are on the hook, while farmers would enjoy almost unlimited risk protection. These programs should not be added to the farm bill. At a minimum, there needs to be a cost cap so taxpayers are not stuck with massive liability.
7. Will Congress continue to artificially drive up food prices? While some in Congress want to spend more on food stamps, others are pushing policies that artificially drive up food prices. For example, the federal government restricts the amount of sugar sold in the country and limits imports, thus driving up sugar prices.
8. Will Congress continue to make President Obama look fiscally responsible when it comes to reforming the costliest farm program, crop insurance? According to the Government Accountability Office, the average annual cost of crop insurance from 2000 to 2006 was $3.1 billion. It more than doubled to $7.6 billion per year from 2007 to 2012 and will increase to a projected $8.9 billion per year from 2013 to 2022. While President Obama is proposing a $12 billion cut to the program, both bills would drive up costs.

Posted in Capitol Hill, Economics, Front Page [slideshow_deploy]

http://blog.heritage.org/2013/12/09/...ampaign=Demint

Nation of Islam Leader’s Home In Hyde Park Received $100,000 in Farm Subsidies

Posted by Jim Hoft on Tuesday, December 10, 2013, 11:34 AM

Your tax dollars at work…

Millions of dollars in farm subsidies were given to city dwellers including over $100,000 to Louis Farrakhan in Hyde Park!


Louis Farrakhan’s home in Hyde Park, Illinois.

Open the Books just completed and released a new report called, “The Federal Transfer Report- Farm Subsidies & The Big Dogs”

Within the report, the group discovered this…

Case Study Example: Three Year Economic Savings Program, Inc., Hyde Park, 60615
A non-profit organization called Three Year Economic Savings Program, Inc received 19 payments totaling $103,529 (2008-11). The address matches Louis Farrakhan’s home and mosque address.

The U.S. Dept. of Agriculture (USDA) shows the organization as located at the residence of The Nation of Islam leader, Minister Louis Farrakhan. As the top recipient of farm subsidies in the Hyde Park neighborhood, it ranked twelfth amongst all Chicago recipients. The Illinois Secretary of State website has the entity’s status as “Not Good Standing,” clink here. Through the website muhammadfarms.com, the organization is still accepting donations.
The home is in the Hyde Park neighborhood–

The mosque was repurchased and rededicated by Minister Louis Farrakhan in 1988 through efforts and sacrifices of the Nation of Islam and supporters worldwide. It was named Maryam after the mother of Jesus, Maryam (Mary). This is to identify it as a holy place from which men and women come forth reborn and transformed with a renewed mind in service of God to fallen humanity.

Additionally- “Three Year Economic Savings Program, Inc.” received a $26,367 “commodity loan” issued by the USDA, Commodity Credit Corporation Fund: to improve & stabilize farm income, assist with a better balance between supply and demand of the commodities.


Click here, to see the Open the Books interactive “Chicago, IL Farm Subsidy Heat

Map”http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2013...arm-subsidies/