On the recordOctober 11, 2011
I join my colleagues in strongly supporting passage of this legislation which renews the Generalized System of Preferences program and also reauthorizes a smaller Trade Adjustment Assistance program. This bill is a key part of the bipartisan trade package before us today and is crucial to letting the world know the United States is back on the trade field again. The legislation has two very important parts: GSP and Trade Adjustment Assistance. With regard to preferences, this program provides preferential access to certain imports from selected developing countries. And, importantly, it also benefits U.S. manufacturers and creates U.S. jobs. Nearly three-quarters of all the eligible imports are raw materials, component parts, or machinery and equipment used by American companies to manufacture goods in America. That means our manufacturers can make things here in the United States more cheaply and employ more Americans in the process. As far as I'm concerned, that is a real win-win. Moreover, I must note that this program is fully offset with spending cuts. On Trade Adjustment Assistance, I applaud Chairman Camp for his scaled-back version of TAA that he was able to negotiate with the White House and Chairman Baucus from the Senate. At the outset, the White House demanded that there be a straight extension of the 2009 law for 5 years and held the trade agreements, frankly, hostage. Chairman Camp, however, refused to accept that ultimatum.…
