Susan Davis: “I am very pleased to be here with my colleagues today. I certainly want to thank Mr. O'Rourke and Mr. Vela and Mr.…”

“I am very pleased to be here with my colleagues today. I certainly want to thank Mr. O'Rourke and Mr. Vela and Mr. Gallego for presenting what we all believe is so critical and so important. It's not just about border communities and border cities that acknowledge and benefit from our relationship with the border, and particularly with the Mexican border; it really is the entire States that we're representing and far beyond that. Because my colleague represented how much trade is done in other States throughout our country--we know it's important to national security--we also know it's important to our economic interest, because that trade fuels our economy, it stimulates our competitiveness, and it also reflects our cultural values. Those things are critically important, and we need to bring those into the discussion as well. You know, we often talk here in Congress about the need to give businesses the certainty that they need, but honestly, look at what's been happening today. The budget standoffs and sequestration are doing just the opposite of what our businesses really need. In fact, Congress' inability to pass legislation is jeopardizing our greatest opportunity right now, which is economic growth, and that is our commerce along our borders. Six million U.S. jobs depend on trade with Mexico. Shall I say that again? Six million U.S. jobs depend on trade with Mexico.…”