NATIONAL PERSPECTIVE 50 YEARS OF SHAPING PUBLIC POLICY by the National Cattlemen's Beef Association Chief Executive Officer Colin Woodall The great 1898 gathering of cattle producers in Denver that established our association declared that one of their objectives would be “to protect cattlemen from the government in Washington.” That objective hasn’t changed much throughout our history, but it wasn’t until the American National Cattlemen’s Association (ANCA) convention in 1970 that the decision was made to open an office in our nation’s capital. C.W. “Bill” McMillan, ANCA’s Executive Vice President at the time, moved from Denver to Washington and rented office space in the National Press Club building two blocks from the White House. In June of 1970, Bill established the full-time cattlemen’s presence that continues today. Bill is 94 years old and still lives in the D.C. metro area. He tells great stories of being in those smoky back rooms in the U.S. Capitol helping Senators and Representatives understand the impact of their decisions on America’s cattle producers. He shared with me that he never wore a coat or carried a briefcase when he went to the Hill because it made him look like he belonged and allowed him to get into many places most others couldn’t. It even got the U.S. Capitol Police to stop traffic for him so he could cross the street! After Bill left the National Cattlemen’s Association to join the Reagan Administration, Burton Eller took the reins of the Washington office. Tom Cook followed Burton, and after the 1996 merger creating NCBA, Chandler Keys got the call to lead our public policy efforts. Jay Truitt took over in 2005 followed by Burton’s second stint at the helm. I had the privilege of leading the D.C. office for a decade, and now Ethan Lane is demonstrating his leadership abilities. Each head of the Washington office brought their own unique personality, approach and methods but all of them continued to enhance the reputation of our association. While the smoky back rooms don’t exist like they used to, NCBA is still the trusted voice of our industry among policy makers and regulators. We use a lot of the same strategies Bill used. In fact, the “old-fashioned” way of lobbying remains the tried-and-true method. Looking people in the eye, being in the right place, shaking hands and letting lawmakers know you are watching, has been critical to NCBA’s track-record of success. You can’t be an effective voice unless you are on the Hill or at the Federal agencies every day. That is what we do. We are known as the lobbyists who shoot straight, follow through and support our friends and allies. We’re also known as fierce opponents who pull out all the stops to protect our members. We don’t hesitate to call out Members of Congress who take action against our industry, and many 14 California Cattleman December 2020
have learned that lesson the hard way. There is no such thing as a 40-hour work week in Washington, D.C. Early mornings, late nights, weekends and holidays are the norm. If Congress is still debating an issue at 1:00 a.m., NCBA’s D.C. staff are in the office and on the Hill. When a Farm Bill Conference Committee is taking place, we have staff in the room and outside the doors to answer questions. I remember the 2008 Farm Bill Conference Committee when I got up, went to the front of the room and just stood there during a vote on one of our priority issues so each Senator and Congressman could see me as they voted. We won that vote. Working Christmas 2003 on BSE, New Year’s Eve and Day 2012 to help avert the fiscal cliff and take care of our tax relief priorities, or making the decision to not close our office during the COVID-19 crisis, makes us a dependable resource to policy makers. As you read this, NCBA is still one of the few ag trade association offices that is even open in D.C. We were the ONLY one that never closed. Richard Nixon was President when our office opened, and NCBA has been in front of every U.S. President since. From Farm Bills, trade agreements, appropriations bills, tax bills and more, NCBA will continue to be the trusted leader and definitive voice of cattle producers in Washington. We are the role model for how an effective public policy office works. NCBA’s Center for Public Policy is effectively positioned to lead for the next 50 years, and much like the objective in 1898, we will work to keep Washington out of your business.
