Jerry Moran: “I rise tonight also to support legislation that is vital to the U.S. agricultural interests, to the farmers and ranchers…”

“I rise tonight also to support legislation that is vital to the U.S. agricultural interests, to the farmers and ranchers of Kansas and across the country. The Selective Agricultural Embargo Act is an important first step in our commitment to reign in embargoes and open markets for U.S. agricultural products. Just last Friday, this Congress took a step to address the short-term needs of farmers by passing a disaster relief bill. Now it is time for Congress to help solve the long-term needs of producers by removing sanctions and opening agricultural markets. The Soviet grain embargo cost United States farmers $2.3 billion. The damage from that embargo left a lasting imprint upon agriculture and scarred our industry in a way that few would have imagined. However, it appears that we have not yet learned our lesson. Wheat imports to North Korea, to Cuba, to Iran, and to Iraq have all doubled since 1995, just a few years ago, since then they have doubled, and now account for over 10 million tons of wheat. However, these growing markets are off limits to U.S. producers but not to Canadian and Australian farmers. In today's global economy, unilateral sanctions unfairly penalize U.S. producers, reward our competitors, and have little impact on changing behavior on targeted countries. The American farmer is tired of paying the price for this failed U.S. policy. Mr. Speaker, I urge passage of this important measure.”