{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.heitkamp.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=AE11F4E9-7D61-4302-A0D1-D69BD08E0F3E", "In Call with U.S. Trade Representative Lighthizer, Heitkamp Secures Commitment to Protect Agriculture in NAFTA Renegotiation", "2017-11-06", "2017", "2017-11", "Democrat", "House", "ND", "Heidi Heitkamp", "H001069", "www.heitkamp.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 U.S. Senator Heidi Heitkamp secured a commitment from U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Robert Lighthizer that he will protect agriculture in any NAFTA renegotiation.\r\nDuring their phone call, Heitkamp urged Lighthizer to protect agriculture in the renegotiation of NAFTA and reinforced how NAFTA has helped farmers and ranchers in North Dakota export to Mexico and Canada, especially as recent news reports said that agriculture may get left behind during the discussions.\r\n\u201cAs the administration attempts to renegotiate NAFTA, there are real concerns that agriculture is getting left behind,\u201d Heitkamp said. \u201cUSTR Lighthizer and I had a good conversation about the need to protect agriculture in these talks, and he acknowledged that pulling out of NAFTA altogether would be devastating to farm jobs in North Dakota and across in the United States. I let him know that there will be a fierce battle to make sure America continues to be the dominant agricultural producer in the world, and he pledged to continue his engagement with me and other advocates for a robust agriculture exports policy as NAFTA discussions continue. We can and must support American workers and level the playing field for manufacturing jobs, but not at the expense of farm jobs. North Dakota farmers export their top notch products around the world, and Mexico and Canada are often some of the top importers, and we can\u2019t close that market for them.\u201d\r\nHeitkamp has long worked to expand and protect market access for North Dakota farmers and ranchers. North Dakota is the ninth largest agriculture exporting state in the country, with $4.1 billion in commodities exported each year\u2014and Canada and Mexico are the state\u2019s two biggest foreign markets.\r\nAs the latest round of NAFTA talks came to a close, Heitkamp pressed the administration to focus on the need for farmers and ranchers to export to survive.\r\nIn May, Heitkamp\u00a0urged U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer\u00a0to defend North Dakota agricultural priorities as the administration renegotiates NAFTA. Heitkamp also pressed Lighthizer to use NAFTA renegotiations to address concerns that North Dakota producers have about Canadian grain standards, Mexican sugar dumping, and country of origin labeling for meat.\r\nStarting with her\u00a0one-on-one meeting with Lighthizer in February, Heitkamp has tirelessly reinforced to Lighthizer\u2014and to other administration officials\u2014that trade agreements should level the playing field for farmers, ranchers, and workers, while also holding other countries accountable when they cheat on trade deals.\r\nHeitkamp is committed to protecting crucial export promotion programs in the 2018 Farm Bill. The president\u2019s budget would have slashed the U.S. Department of Agriculture\u2019s export promotion programs. She also\u00a0wrote an op-ed\u00a0earlier this year about the critical role of agriculture exports.\r\nLast year,\u00a0Heitkamp called on the former U.S. Trade Representative to protect North Dakota grain growers\u00a0from unfair treatment after a\u00a0report\u00a0she\u00a0requested\u00a0showed that Canada segregates North Dakota grain and offers unfair prices to U.S. producers at Canadian elevators. Heitkamp called on Lighthizer to resolve the issue.\r\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.heitkamp.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=AE11F4E9-7D61-4302-A0D1-D69BD08E0F3E"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.9212261065840721, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}