Senate Ag Committee

Georgia Senator Saxby Chambliss was in Ankeny this morning to convene a Senate Ag Committee hearing on the Farm Bill. Chambliss began by assuring the crowd he is not in Iowa to run for president, then added he may be the only member of the Senate who is not running.

Chambliss revealed he has gone pheasant hunting with Congressman Tom Latham and then he launched into a Johnny Carson-like monologue about Senator Grassley:  "He’s prone not to spend a lot of money wherever he goes.  He reads used newspapers he’s so cheap and when I was coming in from the airport last night I asked, I said ‘Now, where are we staying?  Please tell me that Harkin picked out the hotel not Grassley.’  Otherwise, I would have been a camper on a lake somewhere."  (laughter from the senators and the crowd)

A little later, Congressman Leonard Boswell was invited to give brief remarks.  Upon his conclusion, Boswell picked up the package of peanuts which Chambliss’ staff had ensured were readily available beside every microphone in the room.