Political Quotes

“I thank the ranking member for yielding to me. Mr. Speaker, I am an original cosponsor of H.R. 2393, the Country of Origin Labeling Amendments Act. As it has been discussed in this debate, the WTO has made its fourth and final ruling against the United States. Farmers and ranchers in my district in Texas will be hit with tariffs if we don't act right away. COOL has already put a burden on the beef, chicken, and pork producers in the State of Texas. For example, Texas cattlemen are required to spend another $35 to $45 per animal just to comply with complex cattle identification requirements mandated by COOL. This cost will only get worse if retaliatory tariffs are implemented on our exports, tariffs which are completely legal under the World Trade Organization agreement that we have. For example, I have spoken to my friends on the other side of the river, on the Mexican side, and they said that the American products that will be hit by tariffs include beef, wine, corn, corn syrup, furniture, dairy products, machinery, and a range of fruits and vegetables. That doesn't even include the tariffs that the Canadians will put, which probably includes jewelry, bread, beef, tomato products, and other goods. Again, we cannot afford these tariffs, and we should pass the amendments to this COOL bill that we have to remove the threat of those tariffs completely. In Texas, we raise beef, chicken, and pork that is ``made in the U.S.'' We only ask that this be voluntary labeling.…”