MIDDLE CLASS HEALTH BENEFITS TAX REPEAL ACT OF 2019--Motion to Proceed

Floor Speech

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Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, earlier, I was on the floor and talked about how important it is--along with my fellow colleagues--that we move this bill and get it done now. I mean, it is very important that we get it done now. We talked about a lot of different things, but one of the points I wanted to make--I work with it so much, as do some of my colleagues who are going to join me here--is making sure we are also addressing rural America: our farmers, our ranchers, agriculture, rural America. That is the food supply everyone depends on every single day. It is so critically important all the time but particularly at a time like this when we are faced with a pandemic that we keep that food supply working and moving--the whole food chain--all the way from the farmer and rancher, all the way up to the consumer.

As a result of what our farmers and ranchers do, every single American benefits from the lowest cost, highest quality food supply in the history of the world, and they can count on it. They can count on it.

As we pass this phase 3 bill, which is now, I think, about $1.8 trillion, we cannot leave the farmers and ranchers of America out of the bill. It is that simple. Every single American depends on them every single day--and not just Americans but people around the globe. It is so important that we include agriculture in this bill. That is what we have worked to do. We have worked to make sure there is a provision in there so whether it is our cattle producers or whether it is our farmers raising crops across this great Nation, they can continue to do what they do every day on behalf of all Americans.

I talked about that a little bit earlier, but some of my colleagues want to join in, emphasizing how critically important it is that our farmers and ranchers and rural America are part of this legislation. You see on television the cities every day and what is going on in the cities.

In New York or San Francisco or wherever it may be, we get it. There are a lot of people there, and they are close together. It is a huge challenge.

Yet the food, the sustenance--the food, fuel, and fiber--they get every day comes from the heartland. It comes from the rural areas. It doesn't just come from the grocery store. It comes from rural America, and we have to be there for them and keep them going so that they can supply people across this Nation in communities large and small.

I would like to turn to my good friend, the Senator from the State of Kansas. Clearly, it is a State known as part of the breadbasket of this Nation. I would ask that the good Senator from Kansas be allowed to make some comments.

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Mr. HOEVEN. I would like to thank the Senator from Kansas for his remarks and his strong work on behalf of, not just the livestock industry and, of course, Kansas, which, obviously, has a huge role in the cattle industry, but for all of agriculture. You are always there, and I deeply appreciate it.

Before I recognize our next colleague, I do want to make a little change in the order here. If I could, I would like to recognize our colleague from Michigan who is the ranking member on the Ag Committee. She had some thoughts she wanted to interject. I would be willing to defer to her.

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Mr. HOEVEN. I would like to thank the Senator from Michigan. There is no question that she has been a strong advocate for agriculture. I appreciate that and her willingness to work on this. It is imperative that we include our farmers and ranchers in this package. I look forward to working with you. We do need to get to something we can approve and include in the package.

Thank you for your comments.

I turn to my colleague from Nebraska. By way of turning to her, I want to say that the cattle industry has lost between $7 and $9 billion over the last 2 months. I know the cattle industry is important in the Presiding Officer's State. The cattle industry lost between $7 and $9 billion the last 2 months. That is why this is very urgent, and we need to act.

I turn to the Senator from Nebraska for her comments.

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Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, I thank the Senator from Nebraska for her very powerful and heartfelt comments. I have to say she knows of what she speaks. In her coming from Nebraska and being in agriculture, nobody sees it out there more directly or understands more what our farmers and ranchers are going through than she does. I really do appreciate her comments. I think she brings home very clearly how we need to make sure that our farmers and ranchers are part of this important effort as we seek to battle this pandemic. Again, I can't thank her enough for her heartfelt comments.

I turn now to our colleague from the State of Mississippi for her comments.

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Mr. HOEVEN. Mr. President, I thank the Senator from Mississippi, who understands agriculture, is a strong advocate for agriculture, and recognizes how critically important it is.

At this point, I turn to our chairman of the Ag Committee. He is somebody who has been around agriculture for a long, long time. He has worked on many, many farm bills, and whether it is livestock or crops or specialty crops--across the board--he understands.

I say that for this reason: The provision that we have put in here helps all of ag. It is designed for all of agriculture. Certainly, it is absolutely vital for our cattle ranchers to help them in their working with the USDA, but it is for all of these other crops, too, across this great country, and there is incredible diversity in agriculture. What we have tried to do here is to make sure we have something that enables our Department of Agriculture and this body to help all of our producers. Without this, we are not able to do that, and that is why it is so vital that it is part of this package.

With that, I turn to our committee chairman.

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Mr. HOEVEN. I want to thank the senior Senator from Kansas for his comments and for his long service on behalf of agriculture, and I want to thank all of my colleagues who have spoken here. These are people who are working every day on behalf of our farmers and ranchers and on ag and on the Agriculture Committee.

We fashioned something here that works for agriculture. Our message is very simple: We need to make sure our farmers and ranchers are included in this bill, and we need our colleagues across the aisle to work with us to make sure it is in the bill, and we need to get this bill passed now.

With that, I would like to turn to our assistant majority leader-- also from ag country--for concluding remarks. I appreciate the patience of our colleague from West Virginia.

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