Barney Frank Versus Jefferson On Farming

In a debate at the ongoing World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, about the threat of global protectionism, House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank (D-MA), managed to take on Thomas Jefferson.

Frank said the Jeffersonian notion that farming was a superior form of life has led to subsidies and protectionism in the U.S. Similar problems exist in the EU, saying EU agriculture policy is “ridiculous,” Frank claimed European farmers should be bought out.

The idea that the “noble yeoman” must be protected at all costs leads to protectionism, Frank added.