-9999

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, I have come to the floor before to speak about the value of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement and the value to all three countries, but most importantly the United States. I am here again in honor of National Agriculture Week.

I would like to continue my review of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA for short, and I do it today by thanking President Trump for what he called ``the largest, fairest, most balanced, and modern trade agreement ever achieved.''

I hope that President Trump remembers those words--and they were very appropriate words--as he leads the reconsideration of USMCA today.

One little provision, but an important provision in the USMCA, in 2020, when the agreement was signed, it may have been difficult to see just how big an impact the first ever biotechnology provision in a trade agreement would make and how important the dispute settlement piece would be for that agreement, and, in this particular case, helping American farmers.

It happens that in 2022, Mexico tried to ban genetically modified corn. In Iowa language, we say GMO product. This could have led to more bans and shutting off billions of dollars in markets for U.S. ag products.

After a significant push by this Senator and the junior Senator from Iowa, the U.S. Trade Representative filed a successful dispute settlement in the process that was laid out in the USMCA, and that dispute settlement resulted in Mexico reversing its ban on GMO corn. It was a win for U.S. farmers, processors, and the very large, fair, balanced, and modern United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

Now, that is a very small part of this agreement because, overall, the big picture is that USMCA has been a success throughout and for all of our economy, but especially for agriculture.

Now, this agreement--and it is under the agreement--is going through a review process that was called for in that agreement, and the big question is: Will the United States lead Mexico and Canada to continue this agreement to the year 2036?

I am urging this administration that the first few years of the USMCA has been so beneficial to all three countries that it is a no-brainer to continue the USMCA through 2036.

Along this line, I will be meeting with Canadian Senators to talk about how they feel this agreement is going and how successful they think it might be getting it continued.

I hope that it will be continued, and that is what I am urging the Trump administration to see through because, like I say, it is a no- brainer. It should be continued.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source