To the editor:

I attended the Oct 15 debate in Mankato between Rachel Bohman and Brad Finstad, candidates for Congress in the 1st Congressional District. In the debate Rep. Finstad blamed the current Democratic administration and Democrats in general for what he said was the first time the U.S. experienced an Ag trade deficit. Either Rep. Finstad did not know what he was talking about or he was fabricating.

The trade deficit Finstad cited was not the first one to occur. The current trade deficit started in 2018, during Trump’s presidency. Trump imposed high tariffs that started an unnecessary trade war. A trade war that resulted in America losing our market share of international commodity sales. Formerly reliable trade partners retaliated by imposing tariffs on American farm products. And they found new sources to purchase the Ag commodities they require. Trump damaged our trade relationships with many of our best and most reliable trade partners, relationships that took American farm organizations years to build. Nations now wonder if they can count on the U.S. to be a stable trade partner, knowing that if Trump is reelected, he is committed to raising tariffs to an astronomical 20% or even 50%. The resulting trade retaliation will devastate our farmers, the ag economy, and the international trade our national economy depends on.

Rep. Finstad knew, or should have known these facts. Finstad is either woefully ignorant of an important issue in his district, or he willfully misrepresented the facts. Therefore, I plan to vote for Rachel Bohman, the knowledgeable and honest candidate.

Debra Hogenson

Waseca