Bush has threatened to veto the $290 billion bill, saying it is fiscally irresponsible and too generous to wealthy corporate farmers in a time of record crop prices.

But Congress disagreed, with both chambers passing the measure by well more than the two-thirds majority needed to override a veto. The Senate voted 81-15, a day after the House approved it with 318 “yes” votes.

“Americans will have a real choice this fall – between a candidate who supports rural America and family farms and John McCain, who has threatened to veto this critical legislative priority,” she said “I urge President Bush to sign this important legislation so that farmers, ranchers, and those who depend on nutrition programs will get the support that they deserve.”

“I applaud the Senate’s passage today of the Farm Bill, which will provide America’s hard-working farmers and ranchers with more support and more predictability.”

“The bill places greater resources into renewable energy and conservation. And, during this time of rising food prices, the Farm Bill provides an additional $10 billion for critical nutrition programs. I am also pleased that the bill includes my proposal to help thousands of African-American farmers get their discrimination claims reviewed under the Pigford settlement.”

“This bill is far from perfect. I believe in tighter payment limits and a ban on packer ownership of livestock. As president, I will continue to fight for the interests of America’s family farmers and ranchers and ensure that assistance is geared towards those producers who truly need them, instead of large agribusinesses. But with so much at stake, we cannot make the perfect the enemy of the good.”

“By opposing the bill, President Bush and John McCain are saying no to America’s farmers and ranchers, no to energy independence, no to the environment, and no to millions of hungry people.”

“Mr. President, despite my great admiration for America’s hardworking farmers and my support for additional food aid for our nation’s most vulnerable, I must oppose the conference agreement to H.R. 2419, the Food and Energy Security Act, also known as the “Farm Bill.” I recognize that in the days ahead, attempts will be made to use my opposition to this bill for another’s political gain, but I have always worked to do my best for America and that is why I must oppose this conference report. And, the American people deserve to know the truth about this farm bill: It’s a bloated piece of legislation that will do more harm than good for most farmers and consumers.

“In today’s economy, when hardworking American families buy groceries they feel the sting of misguided federal agriculture polices. Instead of fine tuning our farm programs to improve their efficiency, we’ve allowed them to swell into mammoth government bureaucracies that generally exist to serve special interests at the behest of Congressional benefactors. Sixty-nine years after the Great Depression and the advent of the Farm Bill, well into the 21st Century, commodity prices have reached record highs. I believe American agriculture has progressed to the point where we no longer need government grown farms.

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“The American taxpayer has been told before that Farm Bills and their thirst for subsidies were a necessary evil to provide our county—and the world—with affordable, abundant food. Today, as food prices reach historic highs, they’re being told the same thing. We must challenge that notion as grocery bills soar, food banks go bare, and food rationing occurs on a global scale. We must question policies that divert over 25 percent of corn out of the food supply and into subsidized ethanol production. Do Americans really want a support system that costs consumers $2 billion annually in higher sugar prices? Will we truly reduce our dependency on foreign oil by extending tariffs that make it too expensive to invest in sugar ethanol production? Can we honestly demand fair and free trade at Doha while domestic cotton growers dump subsidized cotton on the world market?

“The Farm Bill conference report is expected to cost taxpayers around $289 billion dollars. According to the Congressional Budget Office, this bill will exceed the government’s budget by $10 billion.