American Farm Bureau Federation on Trade Pt 1
I’m Bob Larson. Some last minute details have delayed but not derailed the ratification process of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, but clearing every hurdle is likely a longer course.
When I spoke with American Farm Bureau Federation Vice President Scott VanderWal a couple of weeks ago, he was still hopeful of an early Christmas …
VanderWal … “We are putting on a full-court press to try to get Congress to get that finished up before the end of the year here. If we get past the end of the year, into the election season, that’s not a good thing and we don’t want to go without an agreement.”
But in the long run, VanderWal believes things will work out …
VanderWal … “Yeah, we’re optimistic. Some people say that there’s less than a 50-50 chance of getting it done, but I did see a quote from Representative Peterson, House Ag Committee Chairman, a couple of days ago that he believes that the Speaker’s goal is to have it done by the end of the year. And, we think she’s trying. There’s some political considerations there, but if she can get some of the troops in line, we believe the votes are there and it’s really a nonpartisan thing. We should be able to have a nonpartisan vote in Congress and do the right thing and show that they can still work together.”
The distractions, VanderWal says are just too much …
VanderWal … “There’s so many things going on and it’s such a partisan, bitter situation out there, but this is an opportunity for them to show that they can work together and do something that’s right for the country regardless of politics right now.”
Listen tomorrow for VanderWal’s take on the likelihood of other trade deals getting accomplished.
