Bill Pascrell: “Panama will be the only trade deal that I will vote for because they import very little to the United States in the…”

“Panama will be the only trade deal that I will vote for because they import very little to the United States in the first place. More importantly, this allows for, as I see it, new opportunities for the U.S. gulf and east coast ports. Over 60 percent of the goods shipped through the canal sail to or from the United States. I think they've corrected what needed to be corrected. There is no indication of a loss of American jobs, and I think that's what we should be all about. As for Colombia, I don't know how anyone could stand in front of the American people and say that Colombia is making progress in terms of stopping the concerted, conspiratorial effort, proven time and time again, of the murder of trade unionists in that country. In fact, there have been no convictions in 94 percent of the cases from 1986 to 2010-- 6 percent of convictions. I don't know how anybody could stand on this floor, Mr. Speaker, and compare the system of justice there to the system of justice of the United States. Some have suggested, well, we have murders here in this country, too. Of course there are. This is an absolute disgrace. We've lost our soul on this deal, no question about it. Also, a number of multinational companies didn't want the China currency fixed because it doesn't help their big businesses and their purposes.…”