Missouri U.S. Senator Roy Blunt says he’s been “very concerned” about America’s trade strategy. During the Missouri Farm Bureau Convention this week at the Lake of the Ozarks, the Republican says he’s glad the U.S. did not escalate its trade fight with China.
Blunt thinks getting Congress to approve the new North American Free Trade Agreement between Mexico and Canada will be a big challenge. The Republican says Democrats have not voted for trade deals in any significant number in a long time.
One argument voiced is that the agreement does not go far enough to protect American workers from low-wage Mexican competition. The new deal does not lift the tariffs on foreign steel and aluminum.
Blunt also thinks the federal Farm Bill will pass in Congress this year. He says the bill does not move dramatically in a new direction, but it considers the dramatic changes made in the last Farm Bill.
The compromise bill would keep food stamp benefit requirements the same, legalize hemp for ag production and expand a program for taking environmentally sensitive land out of production for several years.
