President Johnson has vetoed a bill passed by both houses of Congress that would have barred all imports of extra long staple cotton from any nations that fall to maintain diplomatic relations with the United States. Egypt and the Sudan are the only producers of long staple cotton that fit the description, both having broken diplomatic relations with the U.S. in the aftermath of the Six-Day Arab-Israeli war.
The measure was passed handily by the House of Representatives and the Senate on a wave of anti-Arab sentiment arising from the Middle East war. It was also the object of intense lobbying on behalf of cotton growers in the south. Had it passed, the quotas would have been re-allotted to domestic producers of specialty cotton who are concentrated in western Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California.
President Johnson said, in announcing his action, that the bill was “clearly contrary to the national interest” because it “ties the hands of the President in the conduct of foreign affairs” and deprived him “of needed flexibility by forcing an automatic suspension of trade when diplomatic relations are severed.” Administration spokesmen had described the measure last year as a “pin-prick” jab at Egypt that could hamper diplomatic efforts for Middle East peace and might strengthen Soviet influence there. Imports from Egypt and the Sudan run $12 million to $15 million a year. Egyptian spokesmen had said that the loss of the American market for their cotton would not harm their economy because it comprised only 3.4 percent of Egypt’s export total and could easily be absorbed by other markets.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
