Jason Joyce, an eighth-generation lobster fisherman hailing from Swan’s Island, Maine, addressed Tuesday’s Republican National Convention and warned that Joe Biden (D) will be “controlled by the environmental extremists who want to circumvent longstanding rules and impose radical changes that hurt our coastal communities.”
“I have to confess: I didn’t support Trump in 2016. Skeptical that he shared my conservative views, I expected him to flip flop on his campaign promises,” Joyce began.
“But he has followed through on his promises, including last week when he brokered a deal to end European Union tariffs of eight percent on Maine live lobsters and up to 20 percent on Maine lobster products, which is great news for Maine’s lobstermen and women,” he continued.
Joyce explained that those in his profession are “true environmentalists” who “practice conservation every day.”
“If we didn’t, we’d be putting ourselves out of business,” he explained, detailing the Obama-Biden Administration using the Antiquities Act to “order thousands of square miles of ocean off limits to commercial fishermen” as part of a broader effort to “cater to environmental activists.”
“Although Maine’s lobstermen don’t fish there, Obama’s executive order offended us greatly. It circumvented the fisheries counsels’ input,” he explained.
Trump reversed the decision, he continued, adding that the president “supports a process that seeks and respects fishermen’s views.”
“As long as Trump is president, fishing families like mine will have a voice,” Joyce said, warning that Biden will be “controlled by the environmental extremists who want to circumvent longstanding rules and impose radical changes that hurt our coastal communities.”
“I strongly support President Trump’s re-election. When he sees something isn’t right, he’s fearless in fixing it,” he added, praising Trump for nominating Constitution-respecting judges and following through with his promises “like eliminating the European tariffs, and moving the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.”