Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton has already won over many rural voters in New York, where she has served as a senator and her home state of Arkansas, but the question is whether she has the votes to make a difference in rural America in this election. The Democratic National Platform is short on details on what it plans to do to make a difference in the countryside.

Hillary Clinton accepted the Democratic presidential nomination. Photo source: Disney/ABC News

Last August, Clinton released a detailed agricultural fact sheet outlining her comprehensive agricultural policy position for a vibrant rural America. The Democratic National Platform released this week had a mere half-page of text in the 55-page document. A few additional mentions also pop up in the platform’s sections on poverty, tribal nations and public lands and waters.

Promoting environmental practices

The platform said it will increase funding to support the next generation of farmers and ranchers, with “particular attention given to promoting environmentally sustainable agricultural practices.” It also said it “will promote collaborative stewardship of our natural resources while developing clean fuels that will grow our economy, lower our energy bills, combat climate change and make America the clean energy superpower of the 21st century.”

Clinton’s fact sheet provides further clues about how the Democrats might achieve these goals, calling for full funding of the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) and support for the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP).

According to the platform’s “Protecting Our Public Lands and Waters” sub-section: “Agricultural lands account for nearly half of the total land area in America, and our agricultural practices have a significant impact on our water, land, oceans and the climate. Therefore, we believe that in order to be effective in keeping our air and water clean and combating climate change, we must enlist farmers as partners in promoting conservation and stewardship.”

Although it does not address the role of agriculture specifically, the platform commits to convening a summit, within the first 100 days of the new administration, to gather leading scientists, policy experts and activists to chart a course for addressing the climate crisis.

Trade

The platform, approved this week at the Democratic National Convention, states that Democrats will not back free trade agreements that do not support “good American jobs, raise wages and improve our national security.” Deals must include strong and enforceable labor and environmental standards, with streamlined and effective enforcement mechanisms; must crack down on unfair and illegal subsidies; should promote innovation of and access to lifesaving medicines; and should protect a free and open Internet. The United States should not enter into trade agreements that prevent it from approving rules that protect the environment, food safety or public health.

On the campaign trail, Clinton had come out opposed to the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) after her primary candidate, Bernie Sanders, was opposed to it. When Sanders spoke at the convention earlier in the week, he garnered a cheer from the crowd “No TPP! No TPP!” He noted, “We’ve got to make sure that TPP does not get to the floor of the Congress during the lame-duck session.”

Clinton’s trade advisor said Clinton is against the TPP in the lame duck and afterwards.

Democrat congressional lawmakers who support TPP took flak from many convention delegates, particularly supporters of Sanders who strongly opposes the deal. But Democrat backers of TPP appear to be in the majority. A recent survey from the Chicago Council on Global Affairs found that 71% of those who support Democrat presidential nominee Hillary Clinton and 67% of Sanders supporters view trade favorably, and 74% of Clinton supporters and 56% of Sanders backers support the TPP.

Local food support

It seems that Clinton will likely pick up where the Obama Administration has left off on the strong support of local and regional food systems.

Both the platform and fact sheet call for reforms to and increased support for lending and credit programs that serve farmers and rural communities – though the fact sheet provides significantly more detail.

The platform calls for increasing equity capital for rural businesses (generally, not just agricultural businesses) through the expansion of the New Markets Tax Credit. Clinton’s fact sheet does not mention the New Markets Tax Credit but does call for simplifying regulations on community banks, which are the primary financial institutions for more than 70% of rural community members. The fact sheet also seeks to increase the number of rural business investment companies, which “make equity investments in small rural businesses — driving growth and creating jobs in rural areas.”

Drumming up rural support

At the Democratic National Convention this week, there was a plenty of hype around agriculture, with Rural for Hillary holding its first meeting and a special reception honoring Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack.

Vilsack and Pennsylvania Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding were the guests of honor at Tuesday evening's reception at the Union League of Philadelphia, Pa., which is hosted by a group calling itself the Leaders of American Agriculture. The non-partisan group includes 30 companies and trade associations as supporters, including AgriBank, CoBank, FMC Corp., Growth Energy, the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives, PepsiCo and the Renewable Fuels Assn.

Vilsack had been one of the top contenders for Clinton’s vice president spot. However, he continues to be a strong supporter of Clinton and promised he would do everything he can to ensure she’s elected president. He said he'll "wash the dishes or do anything he can" to get her elected. Watch the full interview here.