President Donald Trump says prospects of a deal with South Korea over new U.S. tariffs are “looking good,” as officials fanned out across Washington to tout potential dealmaking. 

“We have the confines and probability of a great DEAL for both countries,” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Tuesday. “Their top TEAM is on a plane heading to the U.S., and things are looking good.”

The administration’s top trade official told Finance Committee senators on Tuesday that the new tariffs would be coupled with “with immediate negotiations with our partners.” U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said discussions are already underway with Japanese officials.

Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said in an interview Tuesday night on Fox that the cabinet is “all hands on deck” on trade discussions. “Just today, I had Ireland here talking about trade with the Irish,” Rollins said, referring to a meeting with Ireland’s Agriculture Minister. The president and other cabinet officials were taking more phone calls Thursday evening, she said.

“I believe we'll be hearing about new deals that are being struck, perhaps by the end of the week. But we will see,” Rollins told Fox’s Brett Baier.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says as many as 70 countries have contacted officials to discuss potential deals.

But, but, but: Not everyone seems to be itching for a deal. Trump said on Tuesday morning he was still waiting for a call from Beijing after he threatened to hike China’s tariffs further. The administration later doubled down on the threat.

Drink up: There’s now a Coffee Caucus

Just in time for the tariff wars, members of the House Ag Committee are among the founding members of a new bipartisan Congressional Coffee Caucus. The caucus is committed to “celebrating and advancing” coffee, according to a National Coffee Association statement spilling the beans.

Reps. Jill Tokuda, D-Hawaii, and William Timmons, R-S.C, will co-chair the caucus. Tokuda sits on the ag committee. Committee Chair Glenn “GT” Thompson, D-Pa., is also among the 17 other founding members.

“Coffee is more than just a daily ritual — it’s a vital pillar of our economy, supporting millions of farmers, businesses, and communities across the country,” Tokuda says I a statement.

FDA cuts come into focus

An estimated 280 positions were cut from the Food and Drug Administration’s Human Foods Program during last week’s reduction in force. The layoffs leave about 750 employees left in the program, according to one industry source.

Some trainers who prepared the field inspection force for food safety were let go. Additionally, the entirety of the communications team was cut. Both moves are making industry stakeholders nervous. 

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Industry groups worked with external stakeholder engagement staff to schedule meetings.

But these staff have been let go. The communications team was also responsible for maintaining the websites keeping stakeholders and consumers informed. Roberta Wagner, senior vice president of regulatory and scientific affairs for the International Dairy Foods Association, says industry groups are worried about the agency’s transparency and engagement going forward.  

Some regulation writers in the foods program were also cut through the reduction in force, including those who worked on Food Safety Modernization Act policies. There are some regulatory writers still at FDA, but some of the institutional knowledge from the foods program is gone, Wagner said.

Meanwhile: Wagner said she’s aware of about 130 cuts from the Center for Veterinary Medicine. This is a smaller department, with about 600 people before the cuts. Support staff to the CVM director were eliminated, including employees involved in the agency’s H5N1 response. 

FDA’s primary piece of the H5N1 response is centered on ensuring dairy foods are safe. Up to this point, the agency has focused on infections in lactating cows and providing safety guidance on raw milk. Wagner said infections in these cows are limited at this point.

Pork-state senators reup bill to strike down Prop 12

Three Senate Ag Committee members from the Midwest are taking another stab at pre-empting California’s Proposition 12, which sets housing standards for laying hens and sows.

Republican Sens. Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst of Iowa, and Roger Marshall of Kansas have introduced the "Food Security and Farm Protection Act.” The measure would prohibit state governments from imposing production requirements on agricultural products originating in other states.

Take note: The lawmakers sponsored a similar bill last Congress, the EATS Act.

Lawmakers mount effort to repeal reciprocal tariffs

A group of mostly Democratic lawmakers are introducing resolutions in both chambers to repeal new reciprocal tariffs. The measures challenge the underlying emergency President Donald Trump used to impose new reciprocal duties.

Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul is the lone Republican backer. He joins six Senate Democrats including Minority Leader Chuck Schumer in launching the Senate effort. The bill will get a vote on the Senate floor after the Easter recess under existing rules.  

Democratic Reps. Suzan DelBene, Wash., Gregory Meeks, N.Y., Richard Neal, Mass., and Rick Larson, Wash., introduced the House measure on Tuesday.

Take note: A similar effort challenging the tariffs on Canada passed the Senate last week after four GOP senators voted with Democrats. But even with the four Republican backers, the resolution is unlikely to get a vote in the House. House leadership have a workaround blocking votes challenging an emergency.

Final Word

Babydog Justice took the mic in the Senate Ag Committee on Tuesday. Freshman committee member West Virginia Sen. Jim Justice introduced his 60-pound English Bulldog, Babydog, to the committee.

“Does Babydog qualify as livestock?” asked Sen. John Hoeven, R-N.D.

“It’s a bit of a risk bringing livestock to an ag committee hearing meeting. You know what we do with livestock,” Hoeven said. “But we love Babydog, so she’s certainly welcome to visit.”

Photo credit: X / @BabydogJustice

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