Tariffs discussed in rural press conference with Tester

Recently re-elected U.S. Senator Jon Tester, D-Mont., talked Tuesday about his concerns with the ongoing trade war and tariffs during a telephone press conference from Washington.

"We need a solution and we need it quickly," Tester said. "The president must stop using farmers and ranchers as pawns in a trade war. We cannot afford to begin another growing season with this cloud of uncertainty."

Tariffs are a self-inflicted problem that has no end in sight, he said. The trade war has already taken a toll on

Montana producers as well as farmers and ranchers across the country, Tester said.

He added that many grain producers still have some of last season's grains "in the barrel" because of the loss of markets.

The tariffs have caused commodity prices to fall and filled family farmers and ranchers with uncertainty, Tester said, making it difficult to plan the next growing season.

If the tariffs cause the country to permanently lose access to some of these international markets, it could be the "death nail in the coffin" for many rural communities across the country, he added.

Montanans raise the best products in the world, Tester said, and access to these international markets assures that producers get the best return on everything they raise.

Tester said he will continue to push the Trump administration for a quick fix to this growing problem because it is critically important to maintain Montana's top industry and to secure the future of the state.

"China has been a bad actor, and we need to hold their feet to the fire," Tester said, "but there are ways we can do it without cutting off markets."

"If I was doing this," he added, "I would try to do it through our financial system. Putting financial restrictions, getting our allies in the region, because we are not the only ones that they have treated poorly. ... I think it is much more difficult to do it with tariffs, especially as they are moving away from this country for some of their feedstock, for their people and their livestock."

Tester said financial restriction would reduce the flow of international money to China. He said this method would be quicker in bringing about a solution because "money talks." This method would also make it difficult for China go to other markets successfully, he added.  

Tester said he wants to continue working on veterans' issues. He said he hopes to get his Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act passed before the end of the year. The bill has bipartisan support, he added, and would help provide care and benefits to Blue Water veterans who served off the shores of Vietnam during the Vietnam War and were exposed to toxins such as Agent Orange.

Tester said some misguided rules prevent Blue Water veterans from receiving benefits because they never set foot on an actual battlefield.

He added that these veterans deserve the same benefits as the other veterans who served during that same time.

Tester said his bill would tear down the barriers to veteran care and insure that they receive the treatment and benefits that they earned while serving this country.

This bill will also extend benefits to the veterans and their families who served near the perimeter of military bases near Thailand during that same era, he said.

"I've met with dozens and dozens of Blue Water Navy veterans across Montana," Tester said. "They all sacrificed greatly for our country, and I think that it is time that we do right by these heroes and get this bill passed into law."

Tester said the only main road block for this bill is the Trump administration. He said this administration doesn't want to pass the bill due to the cost.

"The fact is, taking care of our veterans is the cost of war, and, as a country, we need to do right by our veterans," Tester said."

Tester added that other bills need to be voted on before Dec. 7 of this year. Some of these bills include the remaining seven appropriation bills, which are needed to fund the government, he said.

The appropriation bills are critically important to Montana, Tester said.

"When it comes to crafting budgets, Washington has a habit of kicking the can down the road," he said. "The businesses need long-term certainty, farmers and ranchers need long-term certainty, our men and women in uniform need long-term certainty."

He added that he will be calling both sides together to avoid another government shutdown.

These appropriation bills also provide one last opportunity to sign important legislation into law before the new Congress begins Jan. 3, Tester said.

"I think there is a real opportunity here to get some bipartisanship in Washington," he said.

He added that he thinks the campaign season pulls the nation to the extremes, to the far left and far right. He said he has already worked with some Republicans since the election to get some things done.

"There's good people on both sides of the aisle that can really have good common sense," Tester said. "We can work together to get some things done. If we are willing to put the petty partisanship away and make it so that negotiation and compromise is not a dirty word, then I think we can do some good stuff."

"I am very hopeful this next session will result in some good bipartisan victories," he added.

"I want to thank the people of Montana for entrusting me to a third term," Tester said. "I am humbled by the support and honored to fight for our state every single day. There is a lot of work to do."