Thank you everybody for your parks with us and welcome adrian smith with Stephanie Lester of gaap i inc. Thank you for stickg with us for the closing session of the 2024 Washington International trade conference. Were delighted to welcome our final speaker on stage hes a good friend of all of us in the trade and weighs and mean Sub Committee adrian smith of nebraskas third Congressional District which im told is about 65,000 square miles it is one of the largest nonat large districtss in the country bigger thane 26 states if my math is correct. Thank you so much adrian for joining us and stephanie the Vice President of board of directors thank you for joining us as well. Thank you thrilled to be here with you chairman smith. A little bit more about you a little fun facts i its not only large geographically but your district is the number one agriculture producing district by market value right . Right. Few otherg things too. In agriculture well, youre a big nebraska volleyball fan. Thats big in nebraska. Eb folks may remember last yer that nebraska womens Volleyball Team set a new world record pullingne 92,000 fans to a game which that would make taylor swift proud and the football fans. In the football stadium quite something. Youre cochair of the bipartisan congressional agriculture tradeai caucus we kw is very important to farmers. Solet dig right in and im going to start with the constitution. Constitutional underpinnings of article section 8 gives congress authority to regulate tariffs and foreign commerce. But where is Congress Going to go . What is the role of congress . We tpa expired in 2015 or it was last renewed in 2015 expired in 2021. Ago feels like generations ago. So what do you think the role of congress should be in policy making . Understanding that constitutional underpinning . Look, you know, trade, obviously, requires the vote of congress but it also necessitates the leadership of the administration. And this is i think a great example of tag teaming that can take place to achieve a common goal. I mean, obviously, legislative branch there can be gridlock in various things andca yet now would be such a great opportunity for the administratione to stand up and be heard, for example on biotech corn, and in mexico, for example. Yeah, i guess theyre going through the process here for enforcement. But i would like to see a stronger position from the administration because congress did our work please remember that u. S. Mca was a trump priority under a pelosi speakership that got done. A great example, and i think it can give us some opportunity moving forward. Yeah. Well on that i think weve seen both trump and Biden Administrations have claimed authority to negotiate agreements without tpa. We had with with trump the japan phase one agreement. Weve got biden pursuing pass and apap Critical Minerals theyve also imposed and maintained some significant tariffs under tariffs delegated by congress dating these delegations back to the 60s and the 70s. What do you think that theyve gone too far . And how do we get that back and forth that you were talking about, you know, cocreation right well recently you know let you know the krill call groament that Biden Administration established. That youll hear democrats raise their concerns that the administration went too far on that. I think question should expect administration to go as far as they can that perhaps they can get away with but to ignore congress is to also ignore opportunities to expand trade, and to find trade that has enforcement along with it. Ipaf, of course, itsep been scaled back considerably it is a light touch approach i dont think youll find too many folks saying well the administration went toopr far because theres just not a lot there. So but enforce. I think this is a bipartisan dynamic enforcement to my trade agreement is vital but if there are discussions that take place around trade you know, thats fine. But unless it contains enforcement it just wont be as strong. And at the same time, for my colleagues concern and there are many concern about labor and environment on both sides of the aisle, you know that level of Playing Field thatt we seek best way to achieve that is through a trade agreement and having these discussions ironing out the differences and the best way to get other countries to elevatero their their labor and environment policies to be closer to us is to say hey heres how we can go about that after a good thorough conversation and then ultimately winding its way through a process such as a trade agreement. Yeah. You mention there isnt much there with ipass is there any effort to maybe change that dynamic to get some more there there . Well there is an effort, you know, i sense that, you know, the work force shortages across our economy have recently impacted u. S. Tr as well. So the fact is that we just dont see the priority from the administration which is unfortunate because i did have some hope there would be some, you know, a stronger posture of really leaning into various trade policies that we know these problems exist. And it is not just mexico and biotech corn, for example that one happens to be important to my district and i will say that if we push that aside or do not aggressively defend ourselves on that, i think we should expect other countries on many fronts to really undermine what has previously been agreed upon and when you look at agriculture and usmca the main difference between, between nafta and u. S. Mca is about technology and here we are, and i think it could have and should have been resolved long before now. But lets not sit back and just watch to see what happens. We need to be aggressive and hopefully the president will step up and say himself that is happening is not right. Yeah. Youu know, i mention that tarifs that were imposed under President Trump and then maintained with biden and now were in an Election Year and heard suggestions of maybe 60 tariffs on china. In addition and 10 across the board you know tariff increase, do you think congress should rethink these authorities that theyve delegated to the administration you know look at 232 or iepa delegation do you think congress theres any appetite to revisit some of those . It would be hard to revisit those right now. But it is no secret that im not a huge fan of tariffs. I will also say that with any good negotiation, you want all of your tools available. I have every tool on the table. And that you know should they be used, they you know it should be done in a nimble fashion. To sending a message that were serious about leveling this this Playing Field. Like i think we definitely want to always keep in mind what is net impact from consumers. Afterall theres theyre the ones that make up our economy. And you know, i heard someone say one time that it is not government that creates jobs. Its nots even employers who create jobs but customers who create jobs, here we are as a brand were working for a brand that can relate to that sentiments thank you very much. Im curious just it feels trade policy feels very stuck and polarized how are members of Congress Just looking at trade policy as trade Sub Committee chair the coming to you and talking to you and how do we talk about trade in our district . I imagine for you being having such an agricultural district farmers it is top of mind for them. Just curious what are behind sceneses conversations that lawmakers are asking . Of you colleagues they generally come to me with a concern about the supply chain and maybe cost of inputs so i hear a lot about that. You know, back home in the district, i will say that in terms of agriculture, you know, President Trump enjoyed a lot of support even amidst some of the retaliation that had taken place because i think they theyey sensed that there was a strong position coming from washington and the white house at the time on leveling the Playing Field. And so leaning into those issues, and trade at large i think really empowered folks to ultimately come together finish up with u. S. Mca, and provide a framework u. S. Mca i think weve best to my knowledge is the most bipartisanan trade agreement in in modern history. And so that i think was an opportunity to kick off in a precursor to other opportunities around the world that has not been ceased of late. S that a good question while they both have imposed tariffs, you had trump really take on u. S. Mca and japan agreement how would you compare the two administrations in their trade policies and their trade record . Well, were still waiting to hear what the analysis is on some of the tariffs. Which we should have a heard before nw i would argue. But not even looking at the outcomes of say the four years so farea the three years of biden but its hard to say that trade in the last three years is even close to a priority. And it is much hope as i had when you know, our trade ambassador was introduced on a bipartisan basis before the senate panel and confirmation process. And so you know, i dont know what all has led to such inactivity coming from the administration as it relates to trade. But its c glaring. And this all amidst supply chain crisis if of theres a time that we need to really lean into trade, it is right now. And has been this way for some time. And i f you know, the line is well you know, they fear they dont have the votes for a trade agreement. Well, i dont know of any trade agreement that starte out with enough votes. [laughter] its it required a great amount of diligence conversation, interactions, both branches executive and legislative branch of government, and thats the way it is supposed to be now trade is not easy. Its very difficult. It is very complex it gets in the weeds really quickly. But to just ignore it, will not cause the problems to go away engagement is whatot is necessa, and you know, domestic manufacturers fores example, thy are begging for the stronger supply chain and various other dynamics that we need to Pay Attention to, and were just not seeing it and it is unfortunate. Yeah. Here you have the inaction, there are i think im an optimist and i would like to im excited and at the prospect of weighs and means digging in on trade hopefully in the near term i think this is what everybody wants to hear about weighs and means trade agenda so lets go there, and you know, theres some pending legislation that is the role of congress to renew things like generalized system of preferences which i personally think is a dereliction of duty o thats ben expired as long as it has, but also the miscellaneous tariff bill agoa haiti all of these things coming up for renewal in our legislative programs. What do you think expect to come up in committee coming weeks and months . Sure, i think you can look for legislation coming up on jfp and mtb really interacting with colleagues and it is some good, good dialogue there i think can help us arrive at text and move things forward. I think you know, overall you know we had a hearing last week trade Sub Committee about the wto heading into their next ministerial bipartisan in ourur concerns whether it is the the trips waiver and what that means moving forward. And, but three years with more than three years now with jfp and mtb lapsed that has folks concerned when theyre thinking about agoa coming up next year for renewal that sengdz signals three year lapse sengdz signals that other in other directions that we should be concerned about. So were making Good Progress in bringing folks together on this and unfortunate it has taken so long. Do you expect that work to be bipartisan . I do. Pe i believe the work will be bipartisan, and you know, domestic manufacturing, for example, thats begging for these provisions its bipartisan. Is not these Companies Across america arent just in republican districts, for example. Orer just democrac districts. Its all very bipartisan and i think the fact that u. S. Mca was bipartisan elevated interest both sides of the aisle lets move that with the ball down the field. Theres also a lot of attention on china among policymakers, and the select committee on the Chinese Communist party thats been quite vocal and active including making recommendations on china trade issues raising questions about pmtr policies and these are scary within jurisdiction of the weighs and Means Committee. How do you think the committee is going to deal request some of thesese things that the China Committee has raised in the recommendations . Yeah. Well with any select committee, creation that can sometimes concern the Standing Committees and jurisdiction associated but i think overall, though, theres been good conversation between the select committee on china, weighs and Means Committee other committees as well. And i appreciate their diligence. I think that the bathroom nature priority of being bipartisan has been especially helpful. I will also say looking back to last spring, when the president of taiwan came to california to the Ronald Reagan president ial library that that that was a bipartisan presence for us to welcome the president of taiwan and i think that helped us get some other things done moving at forward from that. Now, when it comes to supply chains, and what, you know, china happens to be doing right now. That concerns perhaps unintended consequences but our response we need to be careful of unintended consequences as well that we might take some action and not even come close to achieving what was intended, in fact, off the to side might be worse consequences. So we have to bet careful of that. You know the economy the way it moves isnt always easy to predict and we must be diligent in how we fashion our policy and keeping consumers in mind and also realize that supply chain resiliency can takenc form in different ways and gsb for example it is not just about china, and it is about other friendly countries who share many of our values, perhaps not 100 align we immediate to be mindful of that as well. But to develop, you know, as materials go shoring fantastic opportunities i think along the way whether central america, south america others i dont to get too geographically specific. But fact of the matter is, i think there are options in the world that exist in a very vibrant way that again, leaning into trade policy i couldn, deliver better results than what weve seen i think at the beginning you know, while back i would have characterized the trade coming from the white house is treading water but i dont think it is that good these day and inaction from the administration that Many Democrats tell me off the side theyre concerned about as well that we areth losing opportunities. And thats with our other interest in mind. And as well as the broader geopolitical interest as well. Uhhuh losing opportunities takes me back to farmers. And they are so in touch with trade and so reliant on trade, are they asking you to find new ways to open Market Access and how do we get there in a bipartisan way . It just feels very stuck right. That calling it stuck, that is correct. I think you know, u. S. Agriculture theyre very engaged on trade. They understand whether it is tpa whether it is other, you know, promotion of our products abroad. Erican people could understand the Foreign Ag Service and what exists on our behalf in embassies around the world. Its very impressive. So we want to keep them on task. And keep advocating for our products around the world. There are good examples of this, an do not want to forget about that. I was in japan a few years back hearing our Foreign Ag Service officer talk about u. S. Beef, i am a little partial. But an expert on the ground in the country like japan its absolutely vital. These are things that take place. We should really celebrate and i think agriculture is very engaged on this comment to your question. But we cant take anything for granted. Other countries would love to take the market share we might take for granted from time to time. Ti now, i happen to think our beef taste better than perhaps some other beef from other countries. And fortunately consumers around the world shared this view. But if our products are so much more expensive, consumers whether it is here, whether it is they are, they are ultimately in charge. They are going to be pricesensitive as a welder. As well. I imagine you have a strong opinion corn fredda grass fed . Works there is no question. [laughter] corn fed okay. Japan likes to tell me they like to buy our corn to feed their beef. The fact of the matter is japan and the u. S. Are fierce competitors in many ways. Healthy competitors i will say. They got their products, we got our products in both valuable in different ways. The backandforth has been very healthy. It has given more opportunity for their products, for our products and it elevates the entire situation. I dont hear from beef operative producers in my district set out the japanese beef, there is room in the world for both of our products. And that is just one example of how healthy competition ultimately helps consumers. I mentioned at the beginning you are cochair of the congressional agricultural trade caucus. Youve got a long cast of coast cochairs. Whatji do you hope to achieve wh the carcass . Works we launch the a couple weeks ago. Its a ways and means an Egg Committee and others. There is such keen interest in this that act, weve got a great story to tell on trade. And having egg trade caucus to what has happened previously but with got to remember we got to the place we are and how we can leverage our now for greater opportunities moving forward for that is what this is about. Im just bringing more information to colleagues and ultimately folks who are interested across america and around the world. Agriculture does not happen by accident. We have record yields of instant drought. Thats not just the research that takes place. That is not as invaluable and less producers across ag america are willing to engage in new ideas. New ways of doing things. We are not careful and we dont have expanding markets overseas we just have our producers of their own success in terms of efficient production. I think it is an Incredible Opportunity we can help feed the world. I think we should take this very seriously. And when you look atk the development theres absolute so much to celebrate and highlight. I do not want to monopolize all the questions. I imagine the audience has some burning questions. Im looking right at you. Thanks. Congressman smith i wondered if you could elaborate a little bit on the prospects for legislation. You sounded fairly optimistic. Do you see a package of trade legislation moving through the house in the senate all the way to the president s desk . What do you think would be and then in the gs p, miscellaneous tariff bill, i dont know what else, taa just if you could be a little more . The hearing from colleagues and so forth the gsp has a lot of momentum. It certainly is still important as well. Its hard to say exactly even with a legislation to be introduced but the final product looks like. There is bipartisan interest here. And especially the signals we can send to teeing up hopefully a renewal before lapse or expires so that we can prevent any lapsed time. That would otherwise take place. Thank you. I had a question which stephanie mentioned there are a lot of proposals swirling around on that to reduce the demand in this level or eliminate entirely. Exclude certain countries for geopolitical reasons exclude certain products. Tod deal with particular protected industries to ensure that sufficient information. What are your thoughts on that . Are you hearing from members how you navigate that while maintaining the underlying policy behind having a de minimis provision . A Common Thread with those who express concern to me and for good reason is enforcement. So hypothetically if de minimis were gotten rid of and there was no enforcement would anything change . And the tighter that might be the more difficult enforcement can become. Now keep in mind various countries just think with canada there is such a glaring difference because they are so protectionist in their approach. And ultimately that hurts their own consumers. But as we move forward looking at dependent is the way it is now and there is a variety of opinions that my first message is how canan we accomplish whatever someone is setting up to accomplish . We have to be very thoughtful. Maybe anecdotally on some of these things were not intended with the increase in the minimum is the way it was or the way it has been. And so movingg forward lets hae as much information on the table as possible so we can sort through what is it folks really want to achieve and whats the best way tout go about achieving that . We have to be diligent and careful there. A good to see you again. I have a question on enforcement. Its a priority and of course these are private sectors in the mexican private sectors. But as you know the record on the enforcement putting aside labor is pretty good. So my question is if we can expect there isf opportunity to change once the elections are over you have your election we have ours. Very soon that process will start the opportunities on the bipartisan to work on getting to the review clause with a better record for enforcement they recently create could take the lead one that is there somethig that could be done there . Like short answer is yes. Theres a window of opportunity with our president ial election coming up that provides limited opportunity for policy yet this year. But i think soon after the election there is reason you mention as well. Lets get this worked out. So both sides can move forward in a way where it is understandable that various stakeholders see on the horizon a more level Playing Field. A congressman i am with Mccarty Associates thank you so much for taking the time. In particular i liked what you saider about the consumer and te customer driving the way we think about trade. When the most direct ways for companies and american i americr small and Mediumsized Company through the internet. Very interested in the perspective on this because of course you talk about the administration treading water. But in many ways and digital we are seeing the backstrokes. Of course u. S. And ca had some really novel commitments when it came to digital trade in ecommerce andde regrettably we are seeinggr administration movg away from the longheld position with free flow data and free competition for u. S. Companies overseas im very interested in what subcommittee more broadly the ways and Means Committee might do that were promoting high standards in the state . A great examples expressing concerns under colleagues the fact i think we are all nervous what might be said in the next ministerial with the wto. We just do not sense a priority from the administration that here we are on the digital front. That we do not want to give that away. In our National Interest but consumer interest around the worldd. Realizing on the digital front it is not even an entity replacing and the economy. But they are the Multiplier Effect can be a little daunting at times. What a great opportunity. Im for the administration to step up because of congress and the bipartisan concerns in the legislative branch i am very concerned the Administration Even having no enforcement to it they backed off of anything digital along thatal route. I was wondering what the status is in regards to the agreements between the u. S. And the eu and what role congress and the ways and Means Committee isnt applying and what do we expect in the next few months . I do not think its clear enough yet for us to formulate a way forward. Critical minerals, the broader issue is getting a lot of conversation among colleagues. From some economically speaking in my own district has a play for Critical Minerals. That is a great opportunity for us in middle america. But also there is lacking clarity moving forward in terms of manufacturing whether it is eb, totally or the hybrid approach thats one of the manufacturing sites. But the intensity of the need for Critical Minerals will be thereal. But working out those details again it is a great example we need to have the conversations moving forward that are not yet being had. At least that we have been informed of it. Whether its here, elsewhere, we need to engage. Hi merely International Trade today. Dont come back we were talking about what if we changed and its not make enforcement doesnt change what does that mean . I want to ask you has to enfore the what are they tellinger you whether staff telling you about what could be administrable . Are some of these ideas cutting out textiles i was saying thats not effective and take more effective. Overall there is concern about resources and how impactful what they actually need moving forward. That they actually want. We wanted them to be able to do their job and they have got a task. It is not easy. And so that agility moving forward is important so they feel they have got the opportunity and the ability to enforce perhaps some distractions that they may not ultimately be as effective at accomplishing the objective. Thank you for your time. Very likely the importance of investment for the value of the trade agreement. Between the wto and the administration will keep the enforcement. Again . The enforcement mechanism what the process although the country quote unquote loan 85 of the balance they asked for. I would like your thoughts about that. The thoughts about the enforcement generally . The fact the u. S. Essentially got rid of the enforcement mechanism and the wto. There is concern about wto and the overall framework of how they operate. Basically one country can have veto power over anything. I colleagues, air for my colleagues a lot how it was funded and how they operate. But heading into various of Big Decisions i grow concerned the way it is structured that other countries might have the Veto Authority are we utilizing our role the way we can and should as well . Trips and vote m so forth have given me concerns are ambiguous as some of these challenges are. We have the opportunity because of the way they are structured we are not take advantage of this opportunities. That concerns me and concerns my colleagues as well it raises various concerns and part of those were raised i was well proportional to, question over there. Thank you for taking my question. We are talking about china and trade we have the Technology Competition going on. Right now the Biden Administration is looking for errors or cooperate with china. If you think agriculture is one area that can become the foundation of rebuilding the relationship . Or is there a national concerted concern in that area as well . We have had a senate sink importing garlic is a National Security concern i went to get your thought on that, thank you. Works there will be a number of different characterizations with various interests in mind. I think by default the fact our ag sectors so productive and efficient in the fact that every would need to eat around the right 96 of the worlds worlds population is outside of our country it is a natural fit that we are viewed as a leader and how important agriculture is you feeding the world. Over time the numbers point to the fact weve given other countries more access to our markets we have given to theirs, that is a problem. Does not get swept aside when there are not the engagements on the conversations that need to take place. So agriculture is front and center, make no mistake thats by other countries retaliate on agriculture because they know how important it is to our country. Even better reason President Biden should address the mexico corn issue head on. I can be done in the very diplomatic fashion. And so 435 members of the house another 100 senators all free agent so to speak representing their constituency in the various perspectives this year e but thats the beauty of our system. It is broadbased. At lets utilizero that various conversations that that is what makes trade more difficult. But doesnt mean we should walk away from doing what we need to do to leanne unlike us that it is an Incredible Opportunity to have the resources to help feed the world. Without even mentioning what a fed world can deliver. That might be for several more conferences visit forward. But appreciate the opportunity glad youre here, glad you are engaged in leading into such an important issue. One last question because were going to give everybody a little bit of homework. This is the trade policy a microcosm of the ecosystem in d. C. We are the policymakers, lobbyists, embassies. What would you like all of us to do to help to get to more constructive place in trade . Extraneous addition might be stuck but will be stuck all byad itself. The consumers domestically and beyond they are going to have things to say about various things. Whether its what they have to pay the Grocery Store elsewhere. But to really sure of the information probably preaching to the choir where were we x amount of time ago versus where we are now and where can we go moving forward . Like i said it is a complex issue. Over time it has evolved a little bit and can tilt the field against us domestically. But i also see that as an opportunity to elevate the discussion even in a district likescdi mine before usmca, say early trump term trade with getting a bad name. I would say it was inaccurately that way. The Trump Administration leading into the trade administration atlarge elevated the discussion in coffee shops across my district and i think across america. He for the democrats oppose the tariffs of the time because there trump the tariffs or whate have you. But the discussion was elevated in terms of what is happening, where have we been, where are we going with this . I think that is healthy and we should utilize that moving forward to channel the discussion and be productive about it. Ultimately getting trade on stock. But also any productive fashion. Thank you. Very grateful to you. Thank you, stephanie. [applause] the aftermath of roberts cision not to charge preside biden in the classified documents case, politico jordan is reporting hou Judiciary Committee will host a special cosel at a public hearing on tuesday, march 12. Its widely assumed the committee will also ask about his characterization of President Biden mental faculties checked cspan. Org in march for our coverage plan. American history tv, saturdays on cspan2 exploring the people and events that tell the american story. At 6 00 p. M. Eastern, talk about the role of africanamericans in the Civil Rights Movement before the 50s and 60s at 7 00 p. M. Eastern we continue with the series free to choose coproduced by nobel prizewinning economist elton freedman and his wife Rose Freedman and 1980 the episode is entitled what is wrong with our schools . Then at 9 30 p. M. Eastern on the presidency, constitutional law and criminal justice professor author of the book of the courts at war looks at Franklin Roosevelt the u. S. 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