Max Baucus: “my remarks will be brief because we are at a point, finally, where we are passing these three trade agreements. The…”

“my remarks will be brief because we are at a point, finally, where we are passing these three trade agreements. The Colombia, Panama, and South Korea Free Trade Agreements will increase U.S. exports by $13 billion, boost gross domestic product by more than $15 billion, and support or create tens of thousands of American jobs. These agreements will provide an economic boost at a time when our country sorely needs it. But the value of these agreements goes well beyond dollars and cents. In recent years, critics of the United States have argued we have surrendered our leadership role on international trade. They claim our government, with its divided powers and narrow and changing partisan majorities, is incapable of forming a consensus for expanding trade, let alone a consensus on other political matters, including reducing our national debt. Today, we have the opportunity to prove our critics wrong. These agreements were negotiated by a Republican President, improved by a Democratic President, and will be supported by strong bipartisan majorities in the House and in the Senate. They demonstrate the best of American values--open markets, transparent regulation, and respect for labor rights and the environment. They set the standard by which all trade agreements will be judged, and they put to rest any doubt the United States will engage its global partners to establish trade rules that are both free and fair.…”