George W. Bush, President, United States of America
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue
Washington, D.C.

Dear Mr. President:

We represent organizations that are dedicated to promoting social, environmental and economic justice throughout rural and urban America. We are writing to express our profound outrage that you chose to appoint Thomas Dorr as USDA Undersecretary for Rural Development, thereby circumventing the Senate’s obligation and right to evaluate his fitness for service in that important position.

Your motivation for the recess appointment is clear to us: to avoid the certain rejection of this unsuitable nominee by the full Senate. As you know, the Senate Agriculture Committee gave Mr. Dorr a vote of no confidence by releasing the nomination without recommendation.

We object to Thomas Dorr’s appointment for many reasons. First, the fact that Mr. Dorr deliberately misrepresented his farming operations structure in order to cheat the U.S. government and circumvent payment limitations would seem to directly contradict your Memorandum For The Heads Of Executive Departments And Agencies on the subject of Standards of Conduct issued on January 20, 2001 – the day of your inauguration. You made much of the high standards, including the avoidance of even the appearance of misconduct, to which you would hold all of your appointees and all federal employees.

On the morning of the Senate Agriculture Committee hearing on his nomination in March, 2002 the Des Moines Register published excerpts from a taped conversation between Mr. Dorr and his brother. In this conversation, Mr. Dorr stated that he had misrepresented the structure of his farming operations to "quite frankly avoid minimum payment limitations." The U.S. government required he return $17,000 in 1995 after a review of his Iowa farm operation.

Just this year, in the wake of the hearing and further investigation, a Dorr family trust was obligated to repay another $17,000. During the August 1st Senate Agriculture Committee meeting, Senator Harkin raised concern that according to materials provided in June, two Dorr family trusts received some $65,000 in farm program payments from 1988 through 1993. These payments apparently fall under the very same circumstances that led to the total repayment of $34,000 for 1994 and 1995. Nevertheless, the USDA continues to withhold further records of Mr. Dorr from the Committee and the public.

President Bush, your appointment of Thomas Dorr, who was CEO of Pine Grove Farms (Dorr farming operation) during the violations cited above, comes just weeks after you signed a new law that punishes corporate CEO’s who have falsified accounting documents. We do not understand why you condone and reward Mr. Dorr’s misconduct while condemning other CEOs.

Second, Thomas Dorr’s vision for increased concentration in U.S. agriculture and the consolidation of many family farms into singular "megafarms" is counter to effective rural development and the promotion of family farm and ranch-based agriculture that is at the foundation of healthy rural economies and agricultural communities. He is also on record as strongly opposing sustainable agriculture, including the cutting-edge work of the Leopold Center at Iowa State University.

Third, Mr. Dorr has made comments tying rural economic development with lack of ethnic and religious diversity. Diversity is increasing in our nation’s rural communities, and we are concerned that Mr. Dorr’s perspective will prevent him from effectively meeting the needs of minority populations. As Senator Harkin said during the Senate Agriculture Committee Hearing on August 1, how does Mr. Dorr’s insensitivity fit the urgent need to reverse the USDA’s poor civil rights record?

Fourth, Mr. Dorr strengthened our opposition to his nomination with his testimony before the Senate Agriculture Committee in March 2002 during which, in a letter to Senator Harkin written by Mr. Dorr himself, he revealed his disdain for rural residents who utilize government programs. In this letter, Mr. Dorr complained about a miniscule tax on his telephone service saying he believed government payments destroyed the initiative of beneficiaries. This seriously calls into question Mr. Dorr’s ability to fairly administer programs providing millions of dollars in federal loans and grants to those he is mandated to serve, but about whom he has made antagonizing statements.

It is not in our nation’s best interest to have an Undersecretary for Rural Development who has admitted misuse of U.S. government programs, antagonized those he would be charged to serve, and who envisions a structure of agriculture that would further depopulate our rural communities. The Undersecretary for Rural Development should support policies that ensure thriving and viable rural communities and uphold USDA standards. This person should also believe in the government programs he will be administering.

President Bush, the conclusions that we draw from your appointment of Thomas Dorr to serve as Undersecretary for Rural Development are troubling. You have ignored the multitude of voices of protest that have been raised to this nomination, and have trumped the right of our elected Senators to judge the fitness of Mr. Dorr’s candidacy. You seem to have no qualms about appointing a man whose ethical, moral and business conduct falls far short of the minimum publicized standards set by your Administration. You have shown disdain for a vision of rural America that promotes family farming, sustainable agriculture and a diverse and just rural economy.

Sincerely,

List of organizations here

cc: members of the Senate Agricultural Committee
Senate Majority Leader, Senate Minority Leader
Speaker of the House, House Minority Leader
USDA Secretary Ann Veneman

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