Oklahoma Senator Tom Coburn noted in a Tuesday letterto Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack that while these conferences may be "fun, " or "even educational, " they reveal an agency unable to set priorities that serve taxpayers as opposed to its own bureaucratic interests.
New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez, a Republican, wrote aletter last month to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, urging the agency to deny the application, on animal-cruelty grounds.