Adam Smith: “I think trade is very, very important. It has a very positive impact on the economy in this country. We need to work to…”

“I think trade is very, very important. It has a very positive impact on the economy in this country. We need to work to improve these trade agreements. But what we try to do with Trade Adjustment Assistance is try to help displaced workers. I have long been troubled by the fact that it's called Trade Adjustment Assistance. I think it should just be called 'adjustment assistance,' because regardless of where your job goes, it creates a problem that needs to be filled. In fact, many jobs are lost in this country to advancements in technology. Frequently jobs are lost from one part of this country to another part of the country, and those people who have lost those jobs are no more impacted than if we develop a competitive disadvantage with a country and they start taking over some jobs in an area that we used to occupy. In both instances workers need help and we need a broad adjustment program to do that. I am, however, troubled, as Mr. Levin pointed out, by the regulations that the administration tried to adopt that would pare back the program and, to some degree, limit the ability of displaced workers to get adjustment assistance.”