US Consul General Michael Thurston has quashed suggestions the Obama administration could resort to a new raft of protectionist measures.

Mr Thurston used his address to the Rural Press Club last Wednesday to scuttle speculation of agricultural protectionism by the US president.

Mr Thurston devoted several minutes of his address to the topic.

"Protectionism is not the way ahead," Mr Thurston said.

"In 2006, then senator Obama made it clear he saw no place for that legislation."

Mr Thurston quoted the president from a speech made that year as having said the US could not repeat the mistake of protectionist policies it enacted in the 1930s.

The then senator had asserted protectionism had sent the market into a deeper depression for longer, Mr Thurston said.

Then Senator Obama's advice had been to "stay global".

The US had eliminated tariffs from 82.4 per cent of Australian goods, and would abolish tariffs on 98 per cent of Aussie goods by 2022, he said.

He said clauses urging companies and consumers to "Buy US" products had been dropped from the US's economic rescue package.

US agricultural exports have been projected to fall 25 per cent this year to $66 billion, Mr Thurston said.

Mr Thurston said US-Australian relations would continue to be further strengthened under the Obama administration.

"Prime Minister Rudd just had an outstanding series of meetings in Washington DC," Mr Thurston said.

"He met the president, key leaders from the senate and the house of representatives, from both parties _ he had access very few foreign leaders have.

"The British Prime Minister (Gordon) Brown didn't have that access _ Australia has access."

Mr Thurston said suggestions the US-Australia relationship would not be as strong once former leaders John Howard and George W Bush were no longer in power were invalid as "the relationship goes beyond two individuals".