GOP

Relatively unknown but ambitious, Georgia Rep. Austin Scott launched his second campaign in a week for House speaker with a call for Republican unity. Kevin McCarthy was ousted as speaker three weeks ago and House Republicans hope to select a nominee from nine aspirants this week.

The first overhaul of the tax code in three decades should result in a one-page tax return for most Americans, President Trump said in Missouri, while declaring that tax reform is the foundation of job growth. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said separately that the estate tax, a bugaboo of the farm sector, should be part of the overhaul expected to be a Republican priority in Congress this fall.

Republican Rep. Jason Chaffetz of Utah has introduced a bill to “dispose,” or sell off, 3.3 million acres of federal public land across 10 states — an area the size of Connecticut, reports The Guardian. The Wilderness Society calls the move “step two” of the GOP’s strategy to take public land out of federal hands, after the Republican House passed a rule allowing the government to sell off federal lands without requiring revenue from the transaction.

At least $93.4 million has been donated to candidates and political action committees in 2015 and 2016 by people, companies and groups in the agribusiness sector, says DTN in a perusal of campaign records compiled by the Center for Responsive Politics.

Democrats' chances of defeating Senate Judiciary chair Charles Grassley, a longtime Agriculture Committee member, were never great and are fading like the shortening days of autumn, says Sabato's Crystal Ball. "With Trump now positioned as a slight favorite to win the Hawkeye State, there is no sign that Grassley is in any danger," says the political website, rating the race as "safe Republican."

Two Republican-held House seats in the heavily agricultural Central Valley of California could be ripe for picking by Democrats if voters are riled by GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump's criticism of Hispanics and immigrants, says the Los Angeles Times. Rep. David Valadao, a member of the Appropriations subcommittee that oversees USDA and FDA funding, represents a district that is 71 percent Latino, and Agriculture Committee member Jeff Denham has a district that is 26 percent Latino.

Seven-term Rep. Steve King, a rock-ribbed Iowa conservative, is being challenged in the Republican primary by state Sen. Rick Bertrand of Sioux City in a contest where ethanol may be the elephant in the room.

Political analyst Stuart Rothenberg says in a Roll Call blog the Senate race in Arkansas involving the chairman of the Senate Appropriations subcommittee for agriculture, Democrat Mark Pryor, is a "dead heat, though with (Republican Tom) Cotton holding a small advantage."

Challenger Chris McDaniel, who lost a run-off to Sen Thad Cochran on June 24, is seeking money to "mount the legal challenge that this case deserves,” according to ABC News. Cochran is the GOP leader on the Senate Agriculture Committee. McDaniel sent a fundraising email contesting the runoff results on Wednesday and a spokesman said the McDaniel campaign has found 4,900 ballots with voting irregularities after checking 53 or Mississippi's 82 counties.

Rep Mike Pompeo, sponsor of a bill to pre-empt states from labeling of GMO foods, is challenged in the Aug 5 Republican primary in Kansas by his predecessor, Todd Tiahrt. The Topeka Capital-Journal describes it as "a GOP family feud punctuated by slash-and-burn denunciations. This is clearly a race capable of ripping Republicans apart."

Republican Pat Roberts, a senior member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, faces an uphill struggle to win his fourth Senate term from Kansas, say two polls over the weekend.

Four farm bill skeptics - Republicans Eric Cantor, Steve Southerland, Pat Roberts and Mitch McConnell - are having an ample share of electoral trouble, writes David Rogers at Politico. Cantor, the former House majority leader, was defeated in his Virginia primary election. Southerland, Roberts and McConnell face strong challenges in the general election. Politico notes there are unique factors in each race and the farm bill is a minor issue, if at all.

Sen Pat Roberts, a senior member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, won the Republican nomination for his fourth term, beating Tea Party challenger Milton Wolf, 48-41.

Rep Luis Gutierrez, long active on immigration reform legislation in the House, "declared the prospects for reform dead this year and said the only option left is for President Barack Obama to take unilateral action to stem deportations," says Politico.