Weekend Must Reads: Heidi Heitkamp’s Trade Stance is Hurting North Dakota

During commercials of the Sunday shows and football games, be sure to check out this local profile of a North Dakota farmer and Congressman Kevin Cramer’s new op-ed on trade.

Steve Kirch of “Dickinson News” profiled North Dakota farmer and Trump supporter Wayne Gerbig to hear his position on trade. Some key points of the article:

  • Some ranchers on the Western Edge of North Dakota are optimistic about how the market looks … One Slope County rancher said he feels good … Wayne Gerbig is a fourth generation rancher, and he and his family lease land on the H-T Ranch in Amidon, ND for their Black Angus cattle, and he said right now he feels pretty good about the cattle market.
  • He is optimistic about the recent trade deal between the U.S. and Mexico, which President Donald Trump said will be “Great for our farmers. . . workers.”
  • Overall, Gerbig said he still stands behind President Trump … “The administration’s before have never brought forward the imbalance of trade.”

This farmer’s views on trade mirror Kevin Cramer’s, who penned an op-ed for the Bismarck Tribune expressing not only his concern for North Dakota’s agricultural community, but also his support for the President’s overall efforts and his work to end this dispute. Some key points:

  • In his recent visit to North Dakota, President Trump said the United States is the “bank” that other countries are robbing, and he is right … It is time for the world to start playing fair with us.
  • China’s unfair practices result in a $376 billion trade imbalance and an additional $50 billion lost each year to their piracy of technology and intellectual property. We know their abusive trade practices are also affecting North Dakota’s farmers and ranchers … they unfairly stifle innovative American agricultural science, like genetically engineered crops. 
  • The President’s use of tariffs on Chinese products is not my preferred trade negotiation method. The collateral damage [of] China’s retaliation … is placing political pressure on the President to back down. … They are purposely agitating the President’s supporter base in hopes the internal strife will make us drop our actions to develop fair trade with them.
  • I was the sole member of Congress to testify before the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative during two public hearings. I shared how China’s retaliatory tariffs impact North Dakota’s agriculture community and manufacturers. I have made it my mission to communicate clearly and directly with administration officials to ensure they fully understand the impact of China’s retaliatory tariffs. I will continue to urge the president and his administration to bring countries like China to the table to find a free, fair, and reciprocal solution.
  • I believe the best way now to serve North Dakota is to offer solutions and I believe the best way to end a trade war is to win a trade war. When this is successful, our nation and our North Dakota agriculture community and manufacturers will benefit for generations to come.

Read the full piece here.

Kevin Cramer’s work on trade is a stark contrast to Heidi Heitkamp, who inexplicably believes undermining President Trump every step of the way, while offering no real solutions, will somehow end this standoff.

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