Ashley Hinson and Iowa’s GOP Congressional Delegation Are Silent as Trump Signs Trade Deal with Argentina That Will Hurt Iowa Cattle Ranchers 

Associated Press: “The Deal Also Shows the U.S. Quadrupling the Current Amount of Argentine Beef it Imports at a Lower Tariff Rate”

DES MOINES – A new U.S.-Argentina trade deal negotiated by the Trump Administration could quadruple the amount of Argentine beef imports into the country, hurting Iowa cattle farmers. 

Farmers deserve answers from Ashley Hinson, Randy Feenstra, Mariannette Miller-Meeks, and Zach Nunn as the president bails out Argentina, imposes reckless tariffs, and fails to meaningfully create new ag markets. 

“Ashley Hinson is saying and doing nothing while farmers just struggling to break even are kneecapped,” said Iowa Democratic Party spokesperson Drew Myers. “It’s clear Hinson would be a rubber stamp in the Senate for trade policies that prioritize China and Argentina at the expense of Iowa.”

Last Year and into This Year, Iowa’s Cattle Ranchers and Producers Made it Clear They Don’t Support the Administration’s Plan to Import Argentine Beef:

• Iowa Farm Bureau Federation President Brent Johnson: “We encourage the administration to resist actions that negatively impact the cattle farmers in Iowa and domestic beef production.”

• Iowa Cattlemen’s Association CEO Bryan Whaley: “President Trump’s recent remarks about potentially importing Argentinian beef are concerning for U.S. cattle producers.”

• Iowa Farmers Union President Aaron Lehman: “Iowa’s congressional delegation has failed to rein in the chaos of the president’s trade policies and have increased the costs to Americans and reduced the income of American farmers and ranchers. This is just another example of the president’s misuse of tariffs for political purposes and our Senators and Representatives failing to hold him accountable.”

• Iowa Family Farmers Pete and Burleen Weobeter: “I thought the whole point of the tariffs was to bring production back home, and now [President Trump] is trying to do something to destroy that production. It feels like being a pawn in a game we’re not going to win. We’re being used and abused as producers.”

• Eastern Iowa Cattle Farmer Steve Swenka: “Bringing in Argentine beef that’ll send a shock wave through the marketplace.”

• Greene County Cattle Rancher Justin Robbins: “If Trump was standing here, I would let him know it’s really supply and demand that brought beef prices up…if this were a friend standing next to me I’d be like ‘Hey, clean it up, let’s think about this for a minute.”

###