Marcy Kaptur: “I only wish we could have had these moments before the Ways and Means Committee itself, the respect Members should be…”

“I only wish we could have had these moments before the Ways and Means Committee itself, the respect Members should be afforded when their State's lost over 200,000 jobs and our Nation millions of jobs to these trade agreements. At least we have earned the respect. I am sorry that we only get 5 minutes on the floor. So many people are depending on us. We know that every time this country signs a free trade agreement with a developing country we end up outsourcing more wealth and middle-class jobs. U.S. companies are shuttering faster than we can count. If these trade agreements were working, America's trade deficit would not be ringing in at over $800 billion this year, and for every billion, 20,000 more jobs lost in this country. What an unprecedented wipeout of productive wealth and of jobs and of lives. The sliding value of the dollar proves it, our staggering debt levels prove it, and the growing stock market instability proves it. If we put it in perspective, we were told that when NAFTA passed, and I voted against that in 1993, our Speaker voted for it, our majority leader voted for it, I remember that vote very clearly, we were told that though we had a surplus with Mexico, it would grow. What happened? We have fallen into deeper and deeper deficit with Mexico every year.”