Political Quotes

“I would urge my colleagues to support the rule, and I think every Member of this body, on both sides of the aisle, have something in common. We all have small businesses in our district and probably a lot of them. One of the privileges we have, as Members of Congress, is to talk to those people and find out what is important to them. What is important to them is important to the country because about 70 percent of the new jobs that are created in the American economy nowadays are created by small businesses. In thinking about what I would say about TPA here this morning, I thought, rather than just tell people what I thought about it, I thought I would bring some examples of some of those folks that we have talked to. As Chair of the Small Business Committee, I get to talk to small businesses all across the country. Here are some examples of what they are telling us. Here is Michael Stanek of Hunt Imaging in Berea, Ohio. He said: Free trade agreements are extremely important as they lower foreign barriers to our exports and produce a more level playing field. Without TPA, the U.S. is relegated to the sidelines as other nations negotiate trade agreements without us, putting American workers and companies, especially small ones, at a competitive disadvantage. Here is Dyke Messinger of Power Curbers in Salisbury, North Carolina: Passage of TPA, which lapsed back in 2007, is critical to restore U.S. leadership on trade. Manufacturers in the U.S.…”