Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, led 19 of their colleagues in calling on Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to reconsider further aid to Argentina and focus instead on restoring and expanding export markets for U.S. farmers.
“We write to you with great concern that the Administration has once again prioritized a foreign nation over the needs of farmers and rural communities,” wrote the Senators. “At the end of September, we wrote to the President expressing our concerns about the Administration’s announcement that it intended to offer a $20 billion currency swap line to Argentina. As you know, shortly after this announcement, 20 shiploads of soybeans were sent to China from Argentina.”
“The recent announcement to double this aid with investments from banks and sovereign wealth funds in addition to the U.S. taxpayer commitment threatens to continue to close markets for American farmers, who are already facing increased competition from Argentine and Brazilian farmers,” the Senators continued. “At the same time the Administration is weighing financial assistance for farmers impacted by the Administration’s self-inflicted trade war, it is unacceptable to continue taking actions that continue to undermine restoring long-term market access for our farmers.”
Along with Klobuchar and Warren, Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Jack Reed (D-RI), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), Peter Welch (D-VA), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Andy Kim (D-NJ), Ruben Gallego (D-NM), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), and Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD) signed the letter.
The full letter is available here and below.
Dear Secretary Bessent:
We write to you with great concern that the Administration has once again prioritized a foreign nation over the needs of American farmers and rural communities.
At the end of September, we wrote to the President expressing our concerns about the Administration’s announcement that it intended to offer a $20 billion currency swap line to Argentina. As you know, shortly after this announcement, 20 shiploads of soybeans were sent to China from Argentina. The recent announcement to double this aid with investments from banks and sovereign wealth funds in addition to the U.S. taxpayer commitment threatens to continue to close markets for American farmers, who are already facing increased competition from Argentine and Brazilian farmers.
At the same time the Administration is weighing financial assistance for farmers impacted by the Administration’s self-inflicted trade war, it is unacceptable to continue taking actions that continue to undermine restoring long-term market access for our farmers.
Source : senate.gov