Rob Portman: “the gentleman is correct. First, Congress has the ultimate say. Congress can vote no on the agreement as it comes before…”

“the gentleman is correct. First, Congress has the ultimate say. Congress can vote no on the agreement as it comes before us. Second, Congress has the ability to forge an agreement, and the administration knows that. In this case our U.S. Trade Representative, Ambassador Zoellick, who is a tough negotiator, is going to be mindful of the fact that what he brings to this Congress has to pass muster here. In this legislation we have unprecedented congressional consultation and involvement. Farmers, one thing that I think is an improvement in this bill, as compared to what we voted on in 1997 and 1998, the Committee on Agriculture has a specific role and has the ability to be in consultation with the administration to help shape that agreement. That is extremely important, because it is probably the most competitive industry in America, is the agriculture industry. Our ability to export our agricultural products around the world is not being maximized because there are barriers to our products. So we are going to have more consultation than we have ever had. The administration will be forced to deal with us to help forge the agreement; and, ultimately, we have the ability to say yes or no.”