Letter to Hon. Donald Trump, President of the United States - Senator Fischer Speaks on the Importance of USMCA

Letter

Mr. President, I rise today to voice my strong support for the passage of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

When I travel the state of Nebraska, I always hear directly from our farmers and ag producers.

Nebraska's farmers have endured some of the most challenging setbacks in recent memory.

The severe flooding last spring devastated thousands of acres of our farm and ranchland, brought hundreds of livestock deaths, and destroyed barns, countless grain bins, hay, and critical farm equipment.

And this list of daunting obstacles continues to grow.

Last July, the Gering-Fort Laramie-Goshen irrigation tunnel collapsed, cutting off a crucial source of surface water to the western region of our state for several weeks.

Only a few days earlier, a devastating fire broke out in a Tyson beef processing plant in Holcomb, Kansas.

The plant processed about 6,000 head of cattle every single day.

That's roughly six percent of the total fed cattle processing capacity in the United States.

The effects of the plant's closure rippled throughout the entire cattle industry and beef processing chain.

This is all in addition to five years of low commodity prices, the unfair small refinery exemptions for oil refiners, and the cloud of uncertainty over trade.

And while all of these factors have caused anxiety and unpredictability, there is one solution that Nebraska's farmers, ranchers, ag producers, manufacturers, and hardworking men and women have made clear that they need -- and that's the passage of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

Mr. President, Nebraska's farmers and ranchers have a different lifestyle than most people.

Their patience is steadfast.

They plan for the long-term.

They can envision how they want their land to look -- not only next year, but 100 years into the future.

It's in their DNA, and families are fed around the world because of it.

They are optimists, but they are realists.

As Secretary Perdue recently said, "They know you can't plant in August and harvest in September."

That's exactly right.

Our producers have remained patient during tough and turbulent times because they know there is an opportunity for a better long-term trade solution on the horizon.

The USMCA would replace the 25-year-old North American Free Trade Agreement and bring the deal into the 21st century -- while fortifying our strong trading relationships with Canada and Mexico -- and growing critical market access for Nebraska.

The heart of Nebraska beats in the same rhythm as agriculture.

It's who we are, and as the world knows, it's what we do better than anyone.

So, it's not hard to understand why our state needs this deal.

America's neighbors to the north and south are the destination of 44 percent of Nebraska's total exports.

In 2017, Nebraska shipped 447 million dollars of agricultural products to Canada -- and a staggering 898 million dollars to Mexico.

These exports include hundreds of millions of dollars-worth of Nebraska's high-quality corn, soybeans, ethanol, and beef.

Specifically, the USMCA maintains and strengthens those markets for corn and soybeans.

It also allows U.S. beef producers to continue to grow their exports to Mexico -- which have risen 800 percent since NAFTA was first ratified.

In 2018 alone, Nebraska exported over 250 million dollars of beef to both countries.

And it's important to note that the benefits of the USMCA extend far beyond our farmland.

Agriculture trade between Canada and Mexico supports nearly 54,000 jobs in the state of Nebraska.

According to the Nebraska Department of Agriculture, Nebraska's 6.4 billion dollars in agricultural exports in 2017 translated into 8.19 billion dollars in additional economic activity.

For the good of our state and nation, these markets need to be protected.

Mr. President, the USMCA goes even further than NAFTA -- it adopts labor and environmental standards that Democrats have long advocated for.

It requires that 40 to 45 percent of auto content be made by workers who earn at least 16 dollars an hour by 2023.

This will undoubtedly help close the gap in labor standards between our nation and Mexico.

According to the United States Trade Representative, the deal includes new provisions to prohibit the importation of goods produced by forced labor.

The USMCA addresses violence against workers exercising their labor rights.

And it ensures that migrant workers are protected under labor laws.

The deal brings labor obligations into the core of the agreement -- and most importantly, makes them fully enforceable.

On top of that, USMCA deploys the most advanced, comprehensive set of environmental protections of any trade agreement in our nation's history.

The list of environmental protections includes first-ever articles to improve air quality, support forest management, and ensure procedures for studies on its environmental impact.

New provisions protect a variety of marine species such as whales and sea turtles and there are prohibitions on shark-finning.

Unlike NAFTA, the USMCA provides enforcement mechanisms that will ensure that all countries not only meet, but strengthen their environmental responsibilities.

Lastly, I want to point out to my Democrat colleagues the support the USMCA is receiving on both sides of the aisle.

I recently heard Tom Vilsack say this: "Under any evaluation, from a U.S. agriculture perspective, this clearly is a better deal. Our hope is that it gets done and it gets done soon."

These aren't the words of a Trump administration official, these are the words of President Obama's former Secretary of Agriculture.

Here's another from Dan Glickman: "We have a good agreement. We cannot let the perfect be the enemy of the good. This is a good deal for America and a particularly good deal for farmers at this vulnerable time."

Again, this isn't support from a Republican member of Congress -- this is support voiced by President Clinton's former Secretary of Agriculture.

What's more, all former agriculture secretaries since the Reagan Administration have voiced their full support for the USMCA.

We've seen the headlines of endorsement -- and one especially caught my attention.

The title of a recent op-ed read: "Democrats Should Give Trump a Win on His Trade Deal with Mexico and Canada."

This piece wasn't composed by a conservative publication-- it was penned by the Editorial Board of the Washington Post.

And finally, a group of 14 House Democrats sent a letter to Speaker Pelosi last July, urging her to take up the USMCA for a vote.

The letter reads: "Canada and Mexico are by far our most important trading partners, and we need to restore certainty in these critical relationships that support millions of American jobs."

Mr. President, both sides of the aisle agree that USMCA is a significant win for farmers, ranchers, ag producers, and America's economy as a whole.

Nebraska's farmers and ranchers have maintained patience in these tough times -- they deserve to know without a doubt that they will continue to have access to their two largest markets and closest trading partners.

As I said earlier, farmers aren't just thinking about themselves -- they are planning for the future generations that will proudly carry on their life's work and continue feeding our world.

Right now, we have an opportunity to come together around a common sense, bipartisan agreement that will benefit the American people both now and for years to come.

Now it's up to Congress to deliver.

I urge Speaker Pelosi to stop needlessly delaying this vote, and I encourage all of my Democrat colleagues not to allow politics to stand in the way of sound policy.

It's time to push the USMCA over the finish line.

Thank you, Mr. President.

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