Farm Bureau fundraiser continuing without speaker

The Missouri Farm Bureau Foundation's fundraising dinner will continue tonight, as planned, even though the keynote speaker can't make it.

Hurricane Sandy has caused Michael Barone's planned flight from Washington, D.C., to be canceled.

So, the Farm Bureau said this morning, he was recording a video message that will be shown during the dinner, and then is planning to take and answer questions using Skype.

Barone has been following the nation's political scene for 40 years.

He's a lawyer who became a reporter and editor, including 20 years on the Washington Post's editorial page.

He currently works as a senior political analyst at the Washington Examiner, a free-circulation newspaper in the D.C. area; a "resident fellow" at the American Enterprise Institute, a Washington think-tank; and a contributor to Fox News.

Tonight's program at Jefferson City's Capitol Plaza Hotel still will have a 6 p.m. reception and 6:30 p.m. dinner.

Proceeds from the $125 per-person dinner will benefit the foundation's scholarship and education programs, especially for young people interested in pursuing agriculture-related careers.