Agriculture Appointment Has Greens Seeing Red

[Grinchie]

Source: Air America

Agriculture Appointment Has Greens Seeing Red

Monday October 26, 2009 2:53 p.m.
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By Dan Carter

The Obama Administration has just announced the nomination of Islam Siddiqui, a pesticide industry lobbyist, to the position of Chief Agricultural Negotiator, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative. Green activists say that the appointment places the president’s commitment to progressive environmental policy in serious question.

Islam Siddiqui is no stranger to Washington. From 1997 to 2001 he served in various positions in the Clinton Administration at the US Department of Agriculture. However, the uproar over his appointment comes from his current position as Vice President for Science and Regulatory Affairs at CropLife America, a trade association representing producers and distributors of pesticides. From 2001 to 2003 he was also a registered lobbyist for CropLife.

Siddiqui is also no stranger to the Obama administration. He contributed $2,300 to Obama’s presidential campaign in 2008. He held fundraising meetings for the president in his home in McLean, Virginia as well.

After the First Lady created a pesticide-free organic garden at the White House, many environmentalists felt that the Obama Administration was signaling a shift to more green-friendly environmental policy. Now, the green movement is crying foul at a perceived betrayal.



Read more: http://airamerica.com/green/10-26-2009/agriculture-appointment-has-greens-seeing-red/#

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Just don't know what to say about this, other than another steaming pile of More of the Same.

[Oregone]

1. "registered lobbyist"

:wtf:

[glitch]

5. What was that about lobbyists in the administration again? But the WH has an organic garden.

I wonder what the First Lady's opinion is on all these corpagra appointments.

[ixion]

2. argh

:wtf:

[Metta]

3. Seems like more 1984-speak.

I'm not optimistic that this pick will have our greatest good in mind.

[virgogal]

4. Madness!

[Oerdin]

6. Just another example of Obama selling out.

He hasn't brought any meaningful change which I can see. Sure, words are nice but I want to see legislation passed and real change made into law but Obama keeps appointing industry lobbyists and cronies so where the hell is the change we were promised? What a load of horse dung.

[SpartanDem]

7. How about opening your eyes

Monsanto under antitrust review by the DOJ

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/monsanto-under-antitrust-review-by-the-doj-2009-10-09

Obama Administration Seeks to Restrict Antibiotics in Livestock

http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_18551.cfm


Obama Sets Steps to Toughen Food Safety Regulation

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123699806012828351.html

[Deja Q]

9. +1

Thank you.

:yourock:

[Iowa]

10. Pfft...

"under review..."

"seeks to restrict..."

"sets steps..."

All talk. No action. As usual. And for every little scrap he throws to the people, he sells out twenty times on issues that matter even more. He turned over agriculture and our food supply to Monsanto and their ilk. Anyone who assigns foxes to guard the chickens doesn't give a shit about the chickens.

He's a corporatist lackey.

[Grinchie]

11. You said it for me.

I've growned tired to dealing with the cheerleaders that see that one tidbit of news, intimating that they may be looking into antitrust violations that are old news by now, while the Economic Largesse that allowed the economic fraud to bring the company to it's knees remains as ambiguous today as it was on 9/2007.

This admin is a total sellout, and the cheerleaders still think that they can divert accountability from the evidence.

Trouble is, the Cheerleaders are no longer pert and sexy enough to illicit anything other that pity and disgust at their feeble antics.

[Nihil]

13. Thanks for summing it up so nicely.

> Anyone who assigns foxes to guard the chickens doesn't give a shit about
> the chickens.

:-(

[Jim Sagle]

8. He said sidickweed, heh heh, heh heh.

[Vidar]

12. Another Obama appointee straight from the sewer.