(Washington, D.C.) –Today,
U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) hosted a meeting with U.S. Secretary of
Transportation Ray LaHood and Washington state farmers and growers so that he
could hear first-hand about the devastating effects Mexican tariffs are having
on the state’s agriculture industry. Murray has been pushing the Obama
administration hard to solve this problem, and in the meeting she expressed her
frustration that Washington state farmers continued to bear the brunt of a
problem that they had nothing to do with creating.
“I asked Secretary
LaHood to attend this meeting to hear directly from our farmers and growers
about the devastating impact that these tariffs are having on Washington
state,” said Senator Patty Murray. “I have been pushing the Administration on this
issue for months, but I am hoping that today’s meeting will help them
understand the urgency of the situation. I am extremely frustrated that this
problem still has not been solved. And I am going to continue pushing both the
Obama Administration and the Mexican government to make the necessary changes
that will allow Washington state farmers to once again compete on a level
playing field.”
Participants in today’s meeting also discussed the
importance of the opportunity to express their concerns to Secretary LaHood:
“It is so great that Senator Murray has been such a
strong advocate for our industry,” said Matt Harris, from the
Washington State Potato Commission. “She understands that these
tariffs have torn apart our industry and hurt our workers and our livelihoods.
We really appreciate her bringing Secretary LaHood here today to here our
concerns.”
“We are grateful for Senator Murray’s hard work on
this issue and we appreciate her bringing Secretary LaHood here to Washington
state to listen to our concerns,” said Bill Zirkle, owner of Zirkle
Fruit Company. “The retaliatory tariffs harm growers, workers, and
many communities in Washington state that depend on healthy apple, pear and
cherry sales. I asked Secretary LaHood to move forward with a plan as
fast as he can, and I am hoping that this meeting gives him some more
perspective on the urgency of this situation.”
Senator Murray has been pushing hard on both the Obama
administration and the Mexican government solve this problem and end the
devastating tariffs.
-
On
July 26, 2010, she included language in a key Senate spending bill that
calls on the administration to put forward a plan that would end retaliatory
tariffs on Washington state agricultural products by October 1, 2010. The bill
passed the Transportation Appropriations subcommittee, which Murray chairs, as
well as the full Appropriations committee, and will now head to the full Senate
for consideration. -
On May 28, 2010, Murray sent
a letter to President Barack Obama urging him move forward with a plan to
end Mexican tariffs that have had a devastating impact on the Washington state
agricultural industry. Murray sent the letter after President Obama met with
Mexican President Felipe Calderon. During the meeting, the two presidents
discussed the tariffs Mexico has placed on U.S. products. Mexico has targeted
eighty-seven Washington state products in this dispute and hundreds of jobs
have been lost. -
Prior to the meeting between President Obama and
Mexican President Calderon, Senator
Murray sent a President a letter urging him to use the meeting as an
opportunity to work to end Mexican tariffs that have had a devastating
impact on the Washington state farmers and families. She has also spoken
with senior White House officials to reemphasize that point. -
On May 4, 2010 Senator
Murray met with the Mexican Ambassador to the United States Arturo Sarukhan
to discuss the impact of Mexican tariffs on Washington state families, jobs,
and agriculture industry. Murray urged the Mexican government to end the
retaliatory tariffs that are harming Washington state families, and to use
Mexican President Felipe Calderon’s upcoming visit to Washington, D.C. as an
opportunity to resolve the differences. -
In early March, at a hearing of the Senate
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Subcommittee, Senator
Murray pushed Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood to move faster
on a plan to resume cross-border trucking with Mexico, urging him to
resolve the situation to save American jobs while ensuring the safety of the
public at large. -
In October 2009, Senator Murray hosted a meeting
between Washington state farmers and Deputy Secretary of Transportation John
Porcari to make sure he understood the local impact of the retaliatory
tariffs. In April of that year, she joined a bipartisan Senate letter to
the Obama Administration urging the end of these punitive tariffs.
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