President Donald Trump's stance on the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was on the minds of some people who attended Sen. Chuck Grassley's town hall meeting in Mount Ayr in southern Iowa Wednesday.
President Trump said Tuesday the trade agreement will probably be terminated at some point.
Polly Hartsook, a farmer near Shannon City, told Grassley she was concerned the end of NAFTA would result in U.S. agriculture being shut out of foreign markets. Grassley pointed out that other than pulling out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, none of Trump's other campaign promises regarding trade have come true.
"He has moderated his views considerably," said Grassley. "I think you ought to see that as helpful."
Speaking with reporters after the meeting, Grassley was asked about the president's lack of legislative accomplishments. Trump has been criticized for not understanding the finer policy points and for being generally uninvolved during the attempt to repeal the Affordable Care Act.
Grassley said it’s not Trump's fault that he’s had few legislative wins because Congress is a separate branch of government. But he added the president should be more active in talking about his priorities.
"One of the problems with this president is that he has not gone to the grass roots enough to advocate for position on legislation," said Grassley.
The town hall was part of the senator's annual 99 county tour. Tomorrow Grassley will be in Bedford, and next week he goes to Primghar, Sibley, Mapleton and Harlan.