Political Quotes

“I rise to talk about a bill which I introduced that I would love to have the Presiding Officer's sponsorship, given how important the Port of Louisiana is to American agriculture and certainly commodities that we ship across the world. It is called the Agricultural Export Expansion Act that I introduced with Senator Boozman as my cosponsor. We have a great bipartisan lineup of people who are interested in this. So what does this bill do? I will say, very rarely does a day go by-- whether I am in North Dakota or whether I am here in Washington, DC-- that I don't speak with or hear from North Dakota farmers and ranchers. The agriculture economy is absolutely critical to North Dakota. Almost one-quarter of North Dakota workers are farmers and ranchers or they are employed in farm-related jobs. During every meeting, farmers and ranchers express the urgent need--the urgent need--to open trade with Cuba and to stop tying the hands of our producers. Just on Tuesday our barley growers were in my office telling me about how important the market in Cuba could be. Last week it was the Dry Bean Council telling me what I already know from my visit with Cuba: The products we grow in the United States--like North Dakota pinto beans or Arkansas rice--are compatible with the Cuban diet, and there is high demand for our high-quality products. These aren't just crops that North Dakota grows. These are crops that North Dakota knows exceptionally well and that we excel in.…”