Just as we were putting the final touches on GOP guy who couldn't get along with House GOP Caucus runs again to end partisan bickering, a legislative update from that self proclaimed bicker-proof New Republican hit our inbox.
It's not yet posted among his News Items on his official webpage yet, so we thought we'd clip this passage from the My Thoughts: Reopen Minnesota section:
. . .Governor Walz needs to see the writing on the wall and put all Minnesotans back to work. The longer Governor Walz prolongs this shutdown, the more Minnesotans will suffer due to the economic damages.
Hog farmers are a major sector of Minnesota’s economy that have been severely harmed by this economic shutdown. Minnesota is the third largest pork-producing state in the nation. However, due to the temporary shuttering of pork processing plants, hog farmers are currently over-stocked with pigs and have no place to send them. As a result, 3,000 pigs were euthanized in Minnesota last week. If our agriculture economy remains shut down much longer, 200,000 pigs could be euthanized. This will result in major revenue losses for our farmers. Governor Walz’ policies could put multigenerational farm families out of business entirely. The economic hardships imposed by Governor Walz must end, and all of Minnesota must be reopened.
This is peculiar stuff, and it comes on a day with headlines like this one at Bring Me The News, Amid more reported outbreaks at Minnesota meat plants, Walz heads to Worthington.
Miller is misinforming readers when he implies the shutdown of the pork processing plants to Walz's policies. Agriculture is an essential industry and wasn't closed by edict.
The shuttered Smithfield plant in Sioux Falls, the final destination for some Minnesota hogs, wasn't even in Walz jurisdiction. The governor of South Dakota didn't shutdown the plant. Management did, as dozens, then hundreds of workers tested positive for COVID-19. Management shut down the plant.
Likewise, the JBS plant in Worthington closed on April 20, the Worthington Globe reported in JBS USA announces indefinite closure of Worthington pork facility.
JBS management closed the plant.
The Worthington Globe reported in JBS, state officials comment on closure of Worthington plant, that Walz didn't point a finger at JBS:
While the decision to close came from corporate management at JBS USA, not from state sanction, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz reiterated during his Monday COVID-19 briefing that the state is keeping an eye on the plant’s status, and is working with management to help the facility reopen safely as soon as possible. “The state of Minnesota didn’t shut down JBS.," Walz said. "JBS's leadership didn’t shut down JBS. The virus shut down JBS.”
AgWeek reports in Wednesday's Euthanizing hogs to begin at JBS in Worthington:
JBS may begin euthanizing market weight hogs at its pork processing facility in Worthington as early as this week as the region’s pork producers have few options to get their livestock processed into chops, bacon, sausage and hams.
The dire situation for pork producers, and the continued closure of JBS in Worthington, is leading Gov. Tim Walz, along with U.S. Reps. Collin Peterson (DFL-District 7) and Jim Hagedorn (R-District 1), to visit Worthington at 1 p.m. Wednesday, April 29. . . .
That's a bipartisan press conference, but we're inclined to favor the workers' view that the guest list is incomplete, reported by Ricardo Lopez in the Minnesota Reformer article,Worthington activists criticize Peterson press conference for excluding JBS pork packing plant workers:
A group of Worthington activists said Wednesday they were “concerned and dismayed” to learn that a planned press conference about meat packing plant closures led by Rep. Collin Peterson and Gov. Tim Walz excluded meatpacking plant workers.
“Workers, organizers and residents are concerned and dismayed that the press conference does not include impacted workers and local public health professionals,” Cheniqua Johnson, an organizer speaking on behalf of workers, said in a statement.
Peterson is slated to speak at 1 p.m. from Worthington, the site of a COVID-19 outbreak at the JBS pork processing plant, which temporarily halted operations last week after at least 26 workers tested positive for the coronavirus. Joining Peterson and Walz are hog farmers who are struggling to sell their livestock and say they will be forced to euthanize their hogs. . . .
President Donald Trump on Tuesday invoked the Defense Production Act to classify meat packing facilities as “critical infrastructure,” ordering them to remain open despite the outbreaks. The administration has pledged to provide more personal protective equipment for workers to ensure their safety, but Worthington JBS employees are skeptical that those measures alone will be insufficient. Some have called for production lines to be slowed.
Tim Miller? Never let a chance to do a little bipartisan bickering over a crisis go unused.
Photo: Representative Tim Miller, Mr. So-Not-Partisan Bickering Guy. Image from Facebook. Cropped
If you appreciate our posts and original analysis, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen, 600 Maple Street, Summit SD 57266) or use the paypal button in the upper right hand corner of this post. Those wishing to make a small ongoing monthly contribution should click on the paypal subscription button.
Or you can contribute via this link to paypal; use email [email protected] as recipient.
Comments