Executive Session

Floor Speech

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Mr. THUNE. Madam President, in just a few days, we will mark the 1- year anniversary of the President's concluding negotiations on the United States-Mexico-Canada Free Trade Agreement. It is time for Congress to ratify this agreement now.

The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement will benefit pretty much every sector of the U.S. economy: the automobile industry, textiles, digital trade and e-commerce, services, manufacturing, and yes, of course, agriculture.

As the representative of a State whose lifeblood is agriculture, farmers and ranchers are always at the top of my mind, and a huge focus of mine right now is helping our struggling agricultural economy.

Low commodity and livestock prices, natural disasters, and protracted trade disputes have made a tough few years for our Nation's farmers. One of the most important things we can do to help our agricultural economy recover is to open new markets for American agricultural products.

During August, I spent a lot of time talking to farmers back home in my State of South Dakota. Again and again, they emphasized that they need action on trade from Washington. With so many trade deals currently up in the air, farmers and ranchers are struggling with a lack of certainty about what international markets are going to look like.

While they share the President's goal of addressing trade imbalances and securing more favorable conditions for American products, they also believe that we need to conclude the agreements that we are negotiating as soon as possible. The longer negotiations drag on, the tougher their situation gets. That is why I have repeatedly stressed the need to bring these agreements to a swift conclusion, and I emphasize that point to the President nearly every time I talk to him.

However, there is one deal we don't need to wait for, and that is the United States-Mexico-Canada Free Trade Agreement. As I said earlier, negotiations on this agreement concluded a year ago, and it is high time for Congress to take it up and pass it so that farmers and ranchers can start seeing the benefits.

The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement is a big win for farmers and ranchers. Of particular interest to South Dakota are the agreement's dairy provisions. Dairy is an important and rapidly growing industry in South Dakota. Drive the I-29 corridor north of Brookings, SD, and you can see firsthand the massive dairy expansion that we have experienced over the past several years.

The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement will preserve U.S. dairy farmers' role as a key dairy supplier to Mexico, and it will substantially expand market access in Canada, where U.S. dairy sales have been restricted. The U.S. International Trade Commission estimates that the agreement will boost U.S. dairy exports by more than $277 million.

The agreement will also expand market access for U.S. poultry and egg producers, and it will make it easier for U.S. producers to export wheat to Canada, and so much more.

Above all, this agreement will provide farmers and ranchers with certainty about what the Canadian and Mexican markets are going to look like going forward. American farmers depend upon these markets to sell their products, and it is vital that farmers have a clear idea of what these markets are going to look like in the future.

Republicans in the Senate are ready to take action on the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement at any point. I hope House Democrats will quickly work out their remaining issues and indicate their willingness to vote on this deal. The administration has made addressing Democrats' concerns a priority throughout the negotiation process, and it is time for Democrats to bring this process to a swift conclusion.

As I mentioned, we are almost a year now past the time when the President signed this agreement, and it has been available for consideration by the House of Representatives for that entire time. It is high time that we act on this trade deal and get it over here to the Senate, where we can vote on it and get it to the President for his signature.

Last week, seven former U.S. Agriculture Secretaries, from both Democratic and Republican administrations, sent a letter to House and Senate leadership stating their strong support for the United States- Mexico-Canada Free Trade Agreement.

The Secretaries noted:

With farmers facing one of the lowest net farm incomes in the last decade, USMCA would create enhanced export opportunities and help fully capitalize on increased global demand for food products. Furthermore, USMCA would significantly boost farm incomes and create jobs both on and off the farm in rural communities.

Again, that is from seven former U.S. Agriculture Secretaries, serving both Republican and Democrat Presidents.

Life hasn't been easy for our Nation's farmers and ranchers over the past few years, and I can certainly attest to that, as I have looked at what the economy in South Dakota has been like in these last several years. The surest way that we can stabilize and boost farm income and help farm country is to conclude agreements like the USMCA. I urge my Democrat colleagues in the House of Representatives to make getting this deal done in the House, over to the Senate, and across the finish line their No. 1 priority.

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Mr. THUNE. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator from South Carolina (Mr. Graham) and the Senator from North Carolina (Mr. Tillis).

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