Washington's senators tour Seattle brewery to emphasize importance of Export-Import Bank

SEATTLE -- Sens. Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell toured a local brewery Friday to to highlight how crucial the Export-Import Bank is to the state's economy.

The two Democrats took a tour of Hilliard's Beer in Ballard, learning from co-founder Adam Merkl just how important the bank has been in helping meet a growing demand for their beer in Sweden.

Murray and Cantwell spoke about the importance of reauthorizing the bank, which was created in 1934 but whose charter expired at the end of June when Congress failed to act.

"We want people to drink Seattle beer, not just in Seattle," Cantwell said. "We want them to drink beer all around the world. But that means that small business like here at Hilliard's have to have an export mechanism to get that great product to those markets."

Brandi Kruse of Q13 FOX News has more on the senators' tour in this video report: