Branstad pushes for South Korea trade office, more export marketing

Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad said today he wants to open a trade office in South Korea and make a concerted push to sell more Iowa agricultural commodities in that part of the world.

Branstad, who previously indicated interest in leading an Iowa trade mission to South Korea, said he wanted to expand the visit to include stops in China and India in hopes of removing obstacles to marketing Iowa products overseas in those growing economies. He said he hopes to meet with other farm-state governors at the National Governors Association's winter meeting in Washington later this month to prod completion and ratification of a U.S. trade agreement with South Korea as a forerunner to expanded export activities.

“I've set ambitious goals in terms of increasing exports,” Branstad told his weekly news conference.

“We think there are great opportunities for us again, especially with the growth that's going on in that part of the world,” said the Iowa governor, who predicted Iowa could triple or quadruple its exports – especially pork exports -- to South Korea if trade barriers are removed and Iowa companies have access to more information regarding trade opportunities.

According to the state Department of Economic Development, Iowa currently has trade offices in China, Japan, Germany and Mexico. In 2009, Iowa exported more than $9 billion in manufacturing and value-added agricultural goods.

During the 2010 campaign, Branstad set a goal of growing Iowa's exports by 20 percent over the next five years – an effort he projected would create nearly 13,000 jobs.

Under the Korea-U.S. agreement, exports of U.S. pork are expected to grow from $215 million to $870 million a year, with much of that growth coming from Iowa farms that are some of the largest producers of high-quality pork products in the world, Branstad said. He also supported mutual efforts to eliminate tariffs and to lower transactional and opportunity costs of foreign trade.

On another topic, Branstad said he expected this week to begin interviewing the nine prospective candidates for three openings on the Iowa Supreme Court who were recommended to him by the state Judicial Nominating Commission. The Republican governor reiterated his disappointment that only one of the nominees is a woman who will be among the candidates who sit for a one-hour interview with the governor before he makes his three appointments later this month to replace ousted Justices David Baker, Michael Streit and Marsha Ternus.

Branstad said the fact that one of the nominees contributed money to his 2010 gubernatorial campaign would not have an impact on his decision, and he joked to reporters that he wished more of them had contributed – something that is allowed by private attorneys but not sitting judges. The list of prospective candidates includes current judges who were appointed by Branstad to the bench – another factor that he said would not give preference in his current selection process.

Also Monday, Branstad called it “unbelievable” that a national political columnist had incorrectly reported that he was endorsing former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty in the 2012 GOP presidential race. “I was absolutely flabbergasted,” Branstad told reporters when asked about the reported Pawlenty endorsement. The Iowa governor did not rule out making an endorsement before the February 2012 Iowa caucuses if a clear frontrunner emerges who he can support, but he said right now “I think it's a wide open field” in the race to land the Republican presidential nomination next year.