Emanuel Cleaver: “Today I rise to speak about a very important issue to my constituents in Missouri's Fifth Congressional District and…”

“Today I rise to speak about a very important issue to my constituents in Missouri's Fifth Congressional District and, frankly, millions of farmers and ranchers all across this great country. Recently, President Donald Trump announced his intention to place a $50 billion--that is billion with a ``B''--in tariffs against Chinese goods, claiming that China has been taking advantage of the United States for too long. I wish that someone in the White House, someone on the staff had cautioned the President on the negative impact his launching of a trade war would have on this country. This unvetted decision has and will continue to cause significant harm to many of my constituents and to rural Americans throughout the heartland. Following President Trump's announcement of his intended tariffs, predictively, the Chinese responded with $50 billion in proposed tariffs of their own. These tariffs, which would be as high as 25 percent, would target 128 American products such as pork, beef, cotton, soybeans, corn, specific types of vehicles, and airplanes. First, I want to talk about soybeans. Last year, the United States exported $14 billion worth of soybeans to China. In Missouri, my home State, soybeans are the number one cash crop, contributing $7.7 billion in total output and supporting more than 20,000 jobs in our State. One out of every three rows of soybeans grown in Missouri goes to China, and one in every four rows grown in the United States goes to China.…”