Kevin Brady: “Mr. Speaker, does it matter in all these discussions if we have a trade agreement with Chile or not? The answer is, if…”

“Mr. Speaker, does it matter in all these discussions if we have a trade agreement with Chile or not? The answer is, if you care about American jobs, yes, it very much matters. The National Association of Manufacturers estimates that the lack of an agreement between America and Chile causes our companies to lose more than $1 billion in sales each year to other countries. For example, when Chile reached free trade agreements with Europe, sales to Europe automatically increased. In fact, it expanded by 30 percent in the year just ending in February, while our increased sales to Chile were negligible at best. We did not have an agreement. Our sales faltered. Germany had an agreement, and their sales grew by almost 50 percent. France had an agreement with Chile. They grew by 41 percent. We have to ask ourselves, if these free trade agreements are so bad, why do other countries pursue them so much, and why do immediately they begin selling more of their products to Chile, and why do they start creating more jobs in their countries? We are paying a price in America for not having a free trade agreement; and, frankly, in this economy we cannot stand to lose even one American job or lose the prospect of creating more American jobs.”