Ways & Means

This week a number of my colleagues, Senator Fischer and I, had the honor of attending President Trump and Chinese Vice Premier Liu He signing a phase one trade agreement between our nations. While we know there is much more work to be done, we should celebrate what the President and his economic team accomplished in addressing longtime Chinese practices while opening new economic opportunities for Nebraska's farmers, ranchers, and manufacturers.

Trade is critical to rural states such as Nebraska. Producers, manufacturers, and consumers all benefit from sound trade policies which expand access to international markets. One of the primary reasons I joined the Ways and Means Committee, is to seize opportunities to reduce tariffs, remove artificial barriers, and ensure all Nebraskans can benefit from fair, open markets. Fortunately, within the past week, we received great news on two massive trade wins for the United States, and Nebraska in particular.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), nearly 50 percent of Americans took at least one prescription drug in the last month. When used correctly and safely, prescription drugs help millions of people by curing, treating, or preventing diseases. Our pharmaceutical system is designed to reward innovators by allowing them to bring new products to market at a price which allows them to recoup their investment, with generic or biosimilar versions later entering the marketplace to drive down prices through competition.

As we enter the end of summer and the beginning of fall, we have a few things to anticipate: harvest, back-to-school, and Husker football. It also means Congress will reconvene following work done across our districts.

There are many things to work on when Congress reconvenes in September. I hope our focus will be trade. It is incredibly important to our economy, particularly agriculture, and we should always be looking to expand markets for American goods and services. Trade is one of my top priorities in the Committee on Ways and Means, which has jurisdiction over trade.

With July upon us, we are now more than halfway through the first year of the 116th Congress. So far 2019 has been marked by partisan divides which have stood in the way of results.

There is much work to do to solve our nation's challenges. Instead of focusing on impeachment or forcing the President to release his tax returns, Congress should be working on efforts to ratify the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA), lower health care costs, and rein in our debt.

Trade agreements reduce trade barriers, which promotes economic growth and cooperative relationships between nations. Because 95 percent of consumers reside outside U.S. borders, we must constantly be looking for ways to increase access to foreign markets and ensure America's competitiveness in an increasingly global marketplace. Negotiating trade agreements reduce tariffs between countries and open previously closed markets. Trade with foreign nations represents tremendous opportunities for the American economy.

Federal revenue continued at near-record highs in 2018, at $3.33 trillion. Unfortunately, this amount was not enough to cover the $4.2 trillion in spending last year, further exacerbating our $22 trillion in national debt. As President Ronald Reagan said, "The problem is not that the people are taxed too little. The problem is that government spends too much."