Thomas Daschle: “Since the House vote, virtually every news account of this trade agreement has called its passage by the Senate all but…”

“Since the House vote, virtually every news account of this trade agreement has called its passage by the Senate all but certain. After months of such predictions, some people might conclude that the votes we are about to cast are a mere formality. They are not. We are making history here. The votes we cast today will have consequences. Those consequences will affect our economic interests, and our national security interests, for decades to come. In one sense, the question before us is simple: Should we grant China the same trading status as we grant nearly every other nation in the world? Behind that question, though, is a larger question. China is home to 1.2 billion people--one-fifth of the world's entire population. What kind of relationship do we want with China? Do we want a China in which American products can be distributed--and our beliefs can be disseminated? Or do we want a China that continues to erect barriers to American goods and American ideals? Which China is better for our future? That is the question at the heart of this debate. Someone who knew something about China answered that question this way. 'Taking the long view, we simply cannot afford to leave China forever outside the family of nations, there to nurture its fantasies, cherish its hates and threaten its neighbors.' My friends, it was not President Clinton who said that. It was not Ambassador Barshefsky, or anyone from this Administration. Richard Nixon wrote that--in 1967.”