Political Quotes

James Traficant: “The trade rep says, don't worry, Congress, we are going to GATT over steel. Wow. Check this out. Three years ago Europe…”

On the recordFebruary 11, 1999
The trade rep says, don't worry, Congress, we are going to GATT over steel. Wow. Check this out. Three years ago Europe blocked American beef. Then Europe blocked American bananas. Uncle Sam went to GATT. GATT ruled in our favor. Europe laughed in their face. GATT says, go to the World Trade Organization. We went to the WTO. The WTO ruled in our favor. Europe laughed in their faces. Then they appealed. Three years later, Uncle Sam is being advised to go back to GATT on bananas and beef. Beam me up. Rip Van Winkel is faster than GATT. America's sovereignty is not predicated on the WTO, Madam Speaker. When it comes to illegal trade, we should never manage it, we should ban it.
Said by
James Traficant
Ohio
Source
govinfo.gov

Editor's note · Context

Discussing trade disputes with Europe and the effectiveness of GATT and WTO.

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