An old Washington joke goes that an employee of the Department of Agriculture sees a colleague sobbing and rushes to ask what's wrong? The man replies, "My farmer died." So it goes with this week's House rebellion on the farm bill, which has Democrats wailing in protest. Their latest vehicle for subsidies and food stamps died.

House Republicans passed an historic farm bill on Thursday that for the first time in about 40 years separates food stamps from farm policy. This bids to divide what has been a political alliance...