Erik Paulsen: “Well, Mr. Chairman, I think what you are alluding to is that fact that America can compete and win at any level if we…”

“Well, Mr. Chairman, I think what you are alluding to is that fact that America can compete and win at any level if we are on a level playing field. If the rules are even, if the rules of the game are set the same, Americans can compete and win. That is, again, going to help improve our economy, help grow jobs here at home. In terms of American exceptionalism, there is no doubt that, when you have got a free flow of goods going across borders, it is going to help our foreign policy, it is going to help us lead from a position of strength. There is someone who famously said at one time: If goods are not crossing borders, guns will. Having that trade connection is very, very important. It helps us have diplomatic conversations. It helps us, as America, lead the rest of the world, showing that we are strong, we are leading out front. Again, if you have two pretty significant trade agreement opportunities being negotiated right now, coming close to conclusion, I think we can wrap those up within the year, if we pass Trade Promotion Authority, both in the Trans-Pacific Partnership and with the TTIP negotiations going on in Europe; and that will cover, by and large, two-thirds of the economy in the world, and all the other countries will follow our lead. This is a huge opportunity, as the chairman knows, for our companies and our economy back home.”