Presidential Candidates on Rural America

The Daily Yonder gave a great deal of coverage to yesterday's National Summit on Agriculture and Rural Life and, in particular, a number of Presidential candidates' participation there. Hillary Clinton appeared by live hook-up and her extensive statement on rural issues, including the 2007 farm bill, appears on her campaign website. John Edwards and Barak Obama both appeared at this summit, as did several academics. Obama said that, if elected, he would hold a summit about rural issues -- not in Washington, DC, but in Iowa. You can read both his and Edwards' positions on immigration and unions, among the issues they discussed in relation to rurality, here. Edwards used this opportunity to reach rural voters to take up the cause of rural education, proposing a $15K subsidy for those willing to teach in under-served rural areas. He also, predictably, invoked his rural roots and identity.