Cattle Industry Opposes Trump's Beef Import Plan to Lower Prices

By Jeff Ferrell

Transcript:
INTRO:
The U.S. cattle industry is reacting to the Trump administration’s plan to bring in 300,000 metric tons of imported beef with reduced tariffs for 90 days. It’s aimed at temporarily lowering beef prices for consumers. Texas Public Radio’s Jerry Clayton has more:
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“The plan — which was announced late last week — has been mostly met with skepticism from the nation’s beef producers. Julie Lewey is a 7th-generation cattle rancher in southwest Texas. “This is a very backhanded way of trying to assist the American consumer while putting down the very entities that are trying to feed America.”
Lewey says foreign beef is not produced with the same standards as in the U.S. “When you increase our imports for ground beef, yeah, you might make it affordable for the everyday Americans, but you're costing them the quality.”
Both the National Cattlemen's Beef Association and The Texas & Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association criticized the plan, along with many Republican leaders.”

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INTRO:
In Louisiana, LSU Health climatologist Barry Keim says a strong El Niño and a high pressure system - that are moving hot air into Louisiana - are largely responsible for the extremely dry conditions this month:
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“We’ve averaged about seven-tenths of an inch across the entire state so far in August. August usually gets about five inches of rain. So needless to say we are way, way behind.”
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Keim says the lack of clouds and water on the surface to cool things off has led to the heatwave that’s been baking much of the state.

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In Arkansas… a new poll in the race for U.S. senate shows Democratic challenger Hallie Shoffner holding a slim lead over two-term incumbent Republican Tom Cotton.
The new Talk Business & Politics-Hendrix College Poll shows Shoffner with 47.4% support compared to 44% for Cotton.
Republican Analyst Robert Coon told host Roby Brock on Sunday’s broadcast that Shoffner’s slight lead falls within the poll’s 4.7% margin of error and that Cotton has a large spending advantage moving forward.
Meanwhile, Dr. Jay Barth, emeritus professor of politics at Hendrix College, pointed out that Cotton has faced a challenge with public perception with Arkansas Voters:
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“There is a perception that he has not been home enough and maybe not cared enough about the issues that affect rank and file Arkansans. He is somebody who cares deeply about international affairs. That’s really where he puts a lot of energy and where he is an influencer I think in D.C. he’s, he’s less, I think he’s somebody who a lot of Arkansans would not recognize because of his disconnect from the state.”