Washington

John Block's bumpy beginning

By ROBERT MACKAY

DURING a meeting with reporters on Capitol Hill, John Block forgot momentarily that agriculture secretaries never acknowledge a connection between cigarette smoking and cancer. While defending tobacco price supports, Block said if cheaper tobacco were available, Americans would "smoke more and get more cancer." After a short pause, he quickly added, "Wait a minute! I don't know if they do."

It is that kind of frankness or political naivete, whatever you prefer to call it, that sets the former Illinois agriculture director apart from other members of President Reagan's Cabinet, and also gets him in trouble with his colleagues in the administration.

For example, Public Opinion, the magazine of the American Enterprise Institute, quoted Interior Secretary James Watt as exclaiming "Holy cow!" when told that Block said federal zoning might be needed to protect farmland from commercial encroachment. "We're not part of the bureaucracy nor are we going to succumb to a Jack Block proposal as you've outlined it," Watt said. "We're the answer."

Even before taking office, Block caused a stir by saying he felt food could be used as a foreign policy weapon. He quickly amended that to mean food should be used as an instrument of peace.

The Illinois hog farmer, who lives in the Northwest section of Washington and jogs 5 to 20 miles every morning, seems to be constantly on Capitol Hill, testifying before committees or meeting legislators, farm groups and reporters. But he is still learning the political Do's and Don't's of Washington, and political insiders have begun to question how much influence Block actually has within the administration.

It took three months of constant urging by Block before the White House lifted the Soviet grain embargo, and then it was removed only because the Polish crisis had eased enough for Reagan to keep a campaign promise. And Block fought for higher price supports for peanut farmers, without success. And yet his job requires him to defend the administration's farm-food budget cuts, including the cutting of price supports for dairy farmers. This has caused the nutrition lobby, dairy farmers and other interests to line up against him. But Block contends the White House does not ignore him or his requests.

"I'm on top of my work, on top of what I want to get done in USDA," Block said. "I feel encouraged about the way government functions .... I have access to the president and to [White House chief of staff] Ed Meese. I think I'm heard."

But there is an impression in Washington that Deputy Agriculture Secretary Richard E. Lyng, who headed Reagan's agriculture transition team and was in the running for agriculture secretary, is actually carrying out White House policy at the department.

John Block

"Block's making the speeches, but Dick Lyng seems to coordinate the policy," said a lobbyist who wished to remain anonymous. "Block's role in these things seems to be less than Bob Bergland's was when he was secretary. What you have is a secretary from the hinterlands and most of the top policy people — skilled Washington hands — really don't need John Block. They already know who is who, and Block's on a different track."

Block flatly disagrees with that assessment. "Mr. Lyng is a fine gentlemen, but he is not setting the policy .... He has picked up where I can't get it done. I assigned him the budget preparation, but we did a lot of it jointly .... The same with the farm bill — it will be my farm bill. In the budget, I preserved the kind of funding I thought we should have .... We put together the farm bill. I'm very satisfied with it ... and it is precisely in keeping with what I have been saying."

Block believes U.S. agriculture needs a positive advocate in the secretary, that farm exports should be increased, that there should be modest increases in commodity price supports to assure more profits in farming, and — in keeping in line with the administration — that some USDA programs should be cut back. Like most other Cabinet members, Block has run into opposition from special interest groups by proposing to cut some agriculture programs, such as those that deal with nutrition.

Ellen Haas of the Community Nutrition Institute said, "We continue to be concerned about his lack of responsiveness on food safety and nutrition issues. We're greatly troubled by his statements that don't show he recognizes the problems of low-income people .... But it's still only the beginning and he deserves credit for going all out on the dairy support issue. That is clearly in the public interest and it takes courage."

One of Block's strongest supporters, Marvin Meek of the American Agriculture Movement, contends any problems in the Agriculture Department should not be blamed on Block, but rather on the people at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

"Block's working good for us," Meek said. "But he has to be frustrated — you'd have to be when you're working with a bunch of damn nuts at the White House who don't understand agriculture."□

June 1981 /Illinois Issues/33