COLUMN | NEWS | FEATURE
with trade and policy chiefs BY: NICHOLE GOULDIE, MKC COMMUNICATIONS AND BRAND MANAGER
W
ith everything that is going on around us, sometimes it is hard to separate the news from the noise in Washington and beyond. Follow along as we ask Gregg Doud and Jim Wiesemeyer, two key ag leaders in D.C., how the current situation can impact your farm and your community. Q: First, obligatory question! How did you find yourself serving as the Chief Agricultural Negotiator, with the Rank of Ambassador, in the Office of the United States Trade Representative? Doud: When the opportunity presented itself for me to join U.S. Trade Representative Bob Lighthizer and the team he was assembling at USTR, I could not think of a better way to serve the interests of American agriculture than to lead the agriculture negotiations during a historic time in U.S. trade policy under President Trump. I have served as the Chief Agricultural Negotiator for USTR for just over two years, after being
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sworn in in March 2018. The time has flown by. Prior to joining USTR, I was President of the Commodity Markets Council, a trade association that brings together commodity futures exchanges and their industry counterparts, for five years. I also previously served as Professional Staff for the Senate Agriculture Committee for Senator Pat Roberts and Senator Thad Cochran, and have held various roles in the agricultural industry for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, the U.S. Wheat Associates and the agricultural commodity consulting firm World Perspectives. I was raised on a farm in Jewell County and am a K-State trained agricultural economist and proud alum. During these past two years, we have made significant progress in expanding opportunities for U.S. food and agriculture exports with several of our key trading partners, including Canada, Mexico, China, and Japan – markets that in 2019 represented nearly 50% of total U.S. agricultural exports. Beyond these achievements, my colleagues
in the Office of Agricultural Affairs at USTR, along with our partners at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), have worked around the clock to address agricultural trade issues with our trading partners and to expand export opportunities for U.S. farmers, ranchers, and agribusinesses. It is an honor to be a part of this team. Q: What does a day in the life of Jim Wiesemeyer look like? Wiesemeyer: A typical day is never typical! There are of course certain major news topics I write about each day. These include U.S./ China trade relations, COVID-19 updates (disease outbreak, mitigation and impacts on the U.S. economy, especially agriculture). Then I look for examples of how the U.S. economy is starting to take steps to get to whatever the “new normal” will be ahead. Eventually my focus will return to my staple list of topics: farm and trade policy and elections and their impacts.
