Today we have joining us also, as I mentioned, Bruce Nelson, who is the State Executive Director of the USDA Montana Farm Services Agency and a good, close friend, personal friend. He's stepped forward and been willing to help us today in carrying forward and working with us to provide for the tough job, and that is to keep everybody in time and keep the flow of presenters moving forward. So please be very gentle to Bruce because he's got a very difficult job.

As I said, he's with the USDA Montana Farm Service Agency, he's their Executive Director of that agency for the State of Montana. He's held that position since 1993. Prior to that, he was President of Triangle N Farms, Inc. in Fort Benton where he was responsible for all phases of the family-owned small grain farm. So he understands agriculture in Montana. Previously to farm management experience, Bruce worked in Washington, D.C. from 1979 through 1980 and was an administrative assistant to Congressman Pat Williams where he supervised staff in D.C. and three field offices in Montana. Please join me in welcoming Bruce Nelson and thanking him for what he's going to do today.

MR. NELSON: Thank you, Ralph. Good morning everybody and welcome. We really appreciate everyone joining us here today and we're looking forward to a good session. It's really unprecedented that our trade representatives would actually travel around the country and visit with folks about what's going on and what needs to be done in the negotiations before those negotiations occur, this is real important.

One of the reasons that I know this is important is because of a high school history class that I had that talked about the world and what trade is about and how the states and trade can hurt people. And I'm happy to say that my high school history teacher is actually here today with his wife from up in Fort Benton. And the only problem is I still feel like I'm being graded here today. So, Gene, we're glad you're here.

I would like to especially thank the panelists who joined us here today; Jim Schroeder, Sharon Lauritsen, Susan Garros, and Tim Galvin. We really appreciate you coming out to Montana. And I would also like to thank Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman; US Trade Representative, Charlene Barshefsky; and Peter Scher for sponsoring these sessions and giving everybody around the country a chance to talk to our trade negotiators before these sessions.

I would like to thank Ralph for being a good friend. I think Montana producers benefit a lot from the strong working relationship that we have between the State Department of Agriculture and the federal agencies in Montana. And thank his staff especially for the great arrangements here today.

And I would especially like to thank Senator Max Baucus, whose invitation to the Department of Agriculture and to the US Trade Representative led to those folks joining us here in Bozeman today.

Well, we'll get started on what this is really all about by first having Tim Galvin, who is the Administrator of the Foreign Agriculture Service visit with you about some background on the World Trade Organization and the actual negotiation process that they'll be going through starting this fall in Seattle. So, Tim, if you would like to come up here, it would probably be a little easier for you to work the slides from up here.