Perdue says US farmers will regain markets lost in trade war
U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue told nervous Midwestern farmers on Wednesday that he’s confident that they’ll eventually regain the markets they’ve lost in the Trump administration’s trade war with China.
Perdue appeared at Farmfest, an annual trade show near the Minnesota town of Redwood Falls, during a listening session moderated by U.S. House Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin Peterson, a Democrat who represents the area. The discussion started with pleasant talk about bipartisan cooperation and agreement on the need for Congress to approve a renegotiated trade pact with Mexico and Canada, the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement.
Then Gary Wertish, president of the liberal-leaning Minnesota Farmers Union, whose family farms near Renville, raised what he called “the elephant in the room,” criticizing President Donald Trump for his “go it alone approach” on China. He pointed to China’s announcement Monday that it was halting purchases of U.S. farm products in response to Trump’s threat last week of more tariffs on Chinese imports.
“This is causing long-term, devastating damage to not only farmers, but rural communities,” Wertish said. He added that farmers “greatly appreciate” the administration’s aid program for farmers hurt by the trade war but said the bailout payments will cause farmers long-term political damage. “The taxpayer is not going to stand for this.”
Read more: https://www.reviewjournal.com/news/politics-and-government/perdue-says-us-farmers-will-regain-markets-lost-in-trade-war-1821252/
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