Grassley Statement on White House Meeting on Trade

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley of Iowa, a family farmer and member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, today released the following statement after meeting with President Donald Trump, several members of the Administration and his Senate colleagues at the White House to discuss trade policy.

 

“I was glad to be able to share with President Trump how farmers and businesses in Iowa are eager for Congress to pass USMCA. I want to be able to help President Trump get a victory on trade and help him keep his promise to get a better deal for American workers and farmers. I urged President Trump to work with us get past the steel and aluminum tariffs issue so USMCA can become law in the United States, Mexico and Canada. The USMCA is a historic achievement for President Trump. Lifting metal tariffs on Canada and Mexico will help the broader U.S. economy realize the agreement’s full benefits and will help a strong economy grow even stronger. I’ll continue to work with my colleagues in Congress and the Trump administration to make sure the tariffs go so USMCA can replace NAFTA and become law this year. We should keep in mind that tariffs are a tax on Americans and we shouldn’t undermine the benefits of historic tax reform with tariffs.”

 

Grassley earlier this week wrote an op-ed for the Wall Street Journal calling on Trump to lift metal tariffs on Canada and Mexico so that USMCA can become law.