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Screeching to a halt
That screeching of brakes you hear is the progress of free trade. When Congress allowed Trade Promotion Authority to expire last week, it essentially took potential buyers away from U.S. farmers. TPA gives U.S. trade representatives the authority to negotiate trade deals, subject only to an up or down vote in Congress. Without it, trade negotiators are forced to go back to Congress, where the trade deal can be changed. Then the trade representatives are forced to go back to the country, where said country doesn't like the changes Congress made and so on and so on. It is all very reminiscent of car shopping, where the salesman leaves you in an uncomfortable chair, in a cramped cubicle, to go get the next offer from the sales manager. In the meantime, you are so ready to get out of there, the car dealers hope you'll just say 'yes' to be done with it. With a trade deal, it isn't just one sales manager that must agree to the deal, it's 100 senators and 435 representatives. There's no one all-important sales manager that comes up with the next just-for-today deal. When was the last time you heard of a bill moving smoothly through Congress without a bunch of added-on pork? Or that a bill wasn't so stripped clean of any teeth that it was inconsequential? Trade is essential to agriculture. U.S. agriculture exports have grown $15.6 billion in just four years since TPA was authorized. The U.S. wheat Associates expect to see an additional $200 million of U.S. wheat purchases per year thanks to Free Trade Agreements with Colombia and Peru. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns stressed the importance of Trade Promotion Authority last week. "Only with this authority will our trading partners take U.S. positions seriously and ultimately complete agreements that maximize the opportunities for America's farmers and ranchers," Johanns said. As Johanns and so many others have pointed out, most of the world's consumers are outside the U.S. borders. American farmers and ranchers need an opportunity to market to them. Holly Martin can be reached by phone at 1-800-452-7171 ext. 1806 or e-mail at hmartin@hpj.com. Date: 7/3/07
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