Political Quotes

“Madam President, I rise today to speak in support of our pending trade agreements with Colombia, Panama, and South Korea. Right before Memorial Day, the Finance Committee held two trade hearings, the first on the U.S.-Panama Trade Promotion Agreement, the second on the U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement. Earlier, the Finance Committee held a hearing on the U.S.-Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement. These agreements have been thoroughly reviewed by our Finance Committee. In fact, given that the Colombia agreement was signed in 2006 and the Panama and South Korea agreements in 2007, these agreements have been more than thoroughly reviewed by U.S. elected officials and U.S. agencies over the past several years. For the sake of the U.S. economy and for the sake of our country's standing in the world, it is clearly time to take the next step. It is time for President Obama to submit implementing legislation for these agreements to the Congress. The U.S. trade agreements with Colombia, Panama, and South Korea are good agreements that will benefit the United States and American workers. According to the nonpartisan U.S. International Trade Commission, these trade agreements, once fully implemented, will likely increase U.S. exports by over $12 billion and grow the U.S. gross domestic product by over $14 billion. Put simply, our trade agreements with Colombia, Panama, and South Korea will boost U.S. exports, expand the U.S. economy, and thus promote job growth in the United States.…”