"I think it will be far more friendly," Nelson said.

That viewpoint was shared by Rob Robertson, Farm Bureau vice president/governmental relations.

"The Obama administration will be more supportive of ethanol subsidies and mandates and farm program subsidies - which are huge policy issues for producers in the Midwest," Robertson said.

Nelson said during a telephone conference with Nebraska reporters Wednesday that he is meeting with officials of the nation's big three automakers to discuss the feasibility of increasing the amount of ethanol allowed in gasoline from 10 percent to either 15 or 20 percent.

He said doubling the ethanol blend allowed in gasoline would provide a big economic boost for the ethanol industry, which is currently facing difficult economic times.

It would also help to boost grain prices for producers and keep gasoline prices down by reducing the amount of foreign oil imported into the U.S., Nelson said.

Nelson is currently a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee. But while committee seats have yet to be assigned, Nelson said he "wants to see what's available."

"I'm not suggesting that I don't want to keep it, but I also want to see what else is available on other committees as well," Nelson said.

Nelson also sits on the Agriculture Appropriations sub-committee.

"I intend to remain very involved in ag issues regardless of whether they allow me to stay on that committee," he said.

Mike Johanns, who was elected to represent Nebraska in the Senate, said during the campaign that he was interested in serving on the Senate Agriculture Committee.

In another agricultural-related issue, Nelson doesn't hold out much of a chance for this lame-duck session of Congress to pass either the Colombia or Panama Trade Promotion Agreements.

"I don't see any traction for that," Nelson said. "I could be supportive of the Colombia and Panama agreement, but there is no movement or groundswell for that to get done yet this year."

On Wednesday, the American Farm Bureau Federation continued its push for passage of the Colombia and Panama Trade Promotion Agreements.

AFBF President Bob Stallman urged House and Senate leadership to schedule a vote on the agreements during the lame duck session.

Stallman said the Colombia and Panama TPAs represent U.S. agricultural export gains of more than $1 billion per year at full implementation.

Currently, Stallman said, Colombia and Panama face no tariff barriers on agricultural products entering the U.S. market.

He said products from these countries enter the United States duty-free through the Andean Trade Preference Act.

Stallman said U.S. farmers continue to face "significant tariff barriers" when exporting products to these two markets, on average 25 percent to 30 percent.

"Major U.S. competitors such as Canada, and possibly the European Union, are pursuing their own trade agreements; unless the United States acts now to lock in the agreements these markets could be placed in jeopardy for our farmers," he said.

But Nelson said the Bush administration "has lost credibility on both sides of the aisle when it comes to trade issues."

"After the first of the year, the Obama administration will look at those two agreements, they will look at the Korean free trade agreement and decisions will be in order," Nelson said.

Nelson said he has confidence that the Obama administration will steer any future trade agreement in the right way.

"Some of these agreements in the past have been more one-way than two-way agreements in terms of whether we export as well as import," Nelson said.

What concerns Nelson is that free trade agreements in the past have tilted trade in such a way that may threaten in the future more food imports coming into the U.S. than U.S. exports moving abroad.

That appeared to be the case earlier in the year when agricultural exports and imports were about even. But since August, U.S. agricultural exports have been gaining ground, according to the USDA, with the monthly surplus between agricultural imports and exports projected to reach $3.2 billion this month compared to $239 million in April.

That monthly surplus is projected to average about $3 billion through September.

Nelson said he also wants future trade agreements to be "free, fair and balanced."

"We will look very carefully at these after the first of the year," Nelson said.

But the Nebraska Farm Bureau's Robertson is concerned with what he considers "plentiful anti-free trade rhetoric during the campaign" from Obama, which, he said, "doesn't lend itself to efforts to increase market access."

"He'll push certain countries - such as Japan to restore U.S. beef imports - but his protectionist approach won't be helpful worldwide," Robertson said.