US President Barack Obama has welcomed the decision of the Senate to move forward on his ambitious trade deals, saying its absence would make American businesses and workers disadvantageous.
US President Barack Obama has welcomed the decision of the Senate to move forward on his ambitious trade deals, saying its absence would make American businesses and workers disadvantageous.
Obama said he shares the values of Democratic critics who worry that any trade deal will be detrimental to American workers while warning that blocking a trade deal will be bad for the US.
"I want to congratulate the Senate on moving forward on providing me the authority to not only strike a smart, progressive growth-promoting trade deal with some of the countries in the Asia-Pacific region and potentially in Europe as well, but also to give me the tools to enforce those agreements, which haven't always happened in the past," Obama said yesterday.
"I think it is the right one not just for big US businesses, but also for small US businesses and medium-size US businesses and most importantly, ultimately American workers," he said.
Obama said it is his firm belief that despite the problems of previous trade deals, that US is better off writing high- standard rules with strong, enforceable provisions on things like child labor or deforestation or environmental degradation or wildlife trafficking or intellectual property and that the US is better off writing those rules for what is going to be the largest, fastest-growing market in the world.
"And if we don't, China will and other countries will. And our businesses will be disadvantaged. And our workers will ultimately suffer. In terms of some of the fears of outsourcing jobs, it is my belief, based on the analysis, that at this point if there was a company in the US that was looking for low-cost labor, they have no problem outsourcing under the current regime," Obama said.
"So what we do have the opportunity to do is to attract back companies to manufacture here in the US. We are seeing some of that happen," he said.
The Senate passed the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015, approving the legislation by 78-20 votes.
"We must ensure our trading partners play by the rules and live up to their commitments. Otherwise, these trade agreements aren't worth the paper they're printed on," said Maria Cantwell, a member of the Senate Finance Committee.
It is among a series of trade bills considered in conjunction with the Senate's procedural vote yesterday to move forward with debate on "fast-track" trade legislation.
House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Paul Ryan said a robust trade agenda is critical to a healthy economy and strong American leadership in the world.
"Enacting TPA will hold the administration accountable and help us achieve better trade agreements for American workers and job creators," he said.
Tom Linebarger, Chair of the Business Roundtable International Engagement Committee also welcomed the Senate decision.
"We are encouraged by the outcome of today's Senate vote to start debate on TPA legislation. TPA is critical to getting the best possible outcomes in trade negotiations," he said.
"Expanding trade opportunities for America's businesses and farmers is key to creating well-paying jobs and delivering much-needed economic growth. We hope the Senate will have a healthy debate on the importance of this bipartisan legislation and pass it as quickly as possible," Linebarger added.
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