Gov.

Tuesday, May 09, 2000

Gov. Jesse Ventura was to have quite the audience today in a meeting with heavy-hitters in our nation’s capital.

Ventura, no stranger this year to Washington, D.C., was to attend a meeting with President Clinton on permanent normal trade relations with China.

A handful of other governors were to attend the session: Gary Locke of Washington, Ed Schafer of North Dakota, Michael Leavitt of Utah and Parris Glendening of Maryland. Also to be in attendance today were Henry Kissinger and former Presidents Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter and George Bush.

That’s quite the lineup.

Agriculture certainly has been capturing the governor’s attention at the state Capitol this year.

In a recent interview with the Austin Daily Herald, Ventura was asked about his recent efforts to push the U.S. government to grant permanent normal trade relations status to China. While the state’s farmers are eagerly watching the development, the governor said everything he’s hearing is "all positive" on the matter.

"This is the most important issue in the 20th century economically," Ventura said at the time.

He also noted that it’s a win-win situation for farmers.

"We’re giving up nothing," he said. "What we’re importing from China now won’t change."

He added that if trade with China isn’t opened up, U.S. farmers will lose.

"If we won’t let our farmers trade, rest assured South America will," the governor added.

That’s why Ventura is staying on top of the issue. You can rest assured that not only will he have a visible voice at today’s meeting, he also will deliver the message.

Ventura’s schedule in Washington was to include media availability so reporters could question him. He’s also scheduled to appear in CNN’s studios for a taping of "Crossfire" before returning to St. Paul this afternoon.

Hopefully, Ventura’s message will carry not only back to Minnesota, but across the nation. Our farmers need access to new markets and China would prove viable to the financial health of our state’s family farms. Ventura can do a lot of good for Minnesota’s farmers with the proper nudge.