Political Quotes

“I thank the chairman for leading this effort tonight, and all of your leadership on trade issues as we go forward. Expanding export markets for American farmers, manufacturers, and service providers is essential if we're going to have a strong American economy with private sector job creation. The United States has not acted aggressively enough to open markets over the past 3 years under the Obama administration. And now we're falling behind as other nations gain market share. America has had a strong comparative advantage in agriculture production historically. In fact, in my home State of Louisiana, the number one export is agricultural commodities. Louisiana ranks fourth among the 50 States in exports. Over 500,000 jobs in my small State, a small State with a little over 4 million people, 500,000 jobs in Louisiana are supported directly by trade. Our rural communities in my State are supported by the strength of agricultural production and access to open markets. The local dentist's office, the local school, the small gas stations, all these things depend on the strength of agricultural production, not only in Louisiana but across our country. We need open markets for agricultural products if we're going to sustain these rural communities and economic development. The trade promotion agreements with Colombia, Panama, and South Korea amount to over $13 billion annually in new market access.…”