Brad Carson: “I rise today as one of the distressingly few Democrats in support of a grant of Trade Promotion Authority to President…”

“I rise today as one of the distressingly few Democrats in support of a grant of Trade Promotion Authority to President Bush. My support of TPA springs from the recognition that trade is really part of a larger debate on the proper role of America in the world today. Many of my colleagues in the Democratic Party state their belief in free trade, but nonetheless refuse to support TPA unless it includes provisions mandating other nations' compliance with our own environmental and labor standards. Alas, this notion, if enacted, would render TPA a nullity, a mere piece of paper that in the prelude expresses support for trade but which, in the details, mocks that claim. None of the developing nations with which we aspire to negotiate new trade agreements will accept strict labor and environmental provisions. And equally as important, the best way to improve labor and environmental standards, given many nations' social conditions, is to increase the wealth of the developing world, which trade will do, while also increasing our own wealth. It is a no-lose proposition.”