Secretary's Speech

U.S. Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez
South Carolina Chamber of Commerce
Anderson, South Carolina

Thank you for that introduction, Representative Barrett. And thank you for your leadership in the United States House of Representatives. You are a great ally to the President and his Administration on the important issues we face.

I want to thank Congressman Barrett for his support of CAFTA-DR. This free trade agreement opens markets for U.S. manufacturers, farmers and services.

This month, I’m leading a business development mission to Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador. We’ve had a lot of interest. We’re taking 15-to-20 companies.

We are targeting a wide range of industry sectors. This includes everything from automotive parts and services equipment to textiles.

We will see free trade in action. We will see why free trade is an essential part of the President’s economic growth agenda. And we will understand why President Bush has challenged the world to eliminate trade barriers.

By bringing economic growth to Central America, CAFTA will contribute to the rise of a vibrant middle class. That puts us a step closer to our goal of a stronger hemisphere. President Bush said our goal should be an Americas in which the opportunities in San Jose, Costa Rica are as real as they are in San Jose, California.

Opening markets, reducing taxes, believing in the power of free enterprise—the President has done it, and it has worked:

We are the world’s fastest growing major industrialized economy.

• Over the past four quarters, our economy grew 3.6 %.
• Unemployment is now 4.9 %, and more Americans are working now than ever before.

Our economy is resilient. We have faced so many challenges in the past five years alone…and just think about it:

• The technology stock bubble burst…that was one major shock.
• Terrorists attacked us on 9/11.
• Corporate scandals drove down public confidence.
• And, last year, four of the most destructive and expensive hurricanes in our history struck the United States.

This all occurred after the President inherited a recession. So think about what we’ve been through. But the President put in place policies promoting entrepreneurship, innovation, risk-taking, job creation and economic growth.

You can be confident that we will continue on that path.

Our most pressing economic concern is the timely and systematic restoration of the areas damaged by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. And here, the continued strength of our national economy will be a lifeline to Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Texas; lifting the devastated areas in our Gulf States back to normal.

As part of the relief and recovery, we have three major commitments:

• Taking care of the victims,
• Helping them put their lives back together, and
• Ensuring that communities are rebuilt better and stronger.

President Bush is deploying the full resources of the federal government to achieve those goals.

When the history of this tragedy is written, businesses will be part of that long list of heroes. At the Commerce Department, we’re taking action so it will be easier for people around the country to help New Orleans and the Gulf Coast.

This week, we launched a Hurricane Contracting Information Center that’s a one-stop-shop for businesses that want to take part in the reconstruction. We’re helping companies register with the government agencies that are providing the rebuilding contracts.

Our phone line, 888-4USADOC, is staffed by procurement experts from across the federal government. They’ll help businesses navigate the red tape to put their skills to work in the Gulf Coast. You can also go to our website, RebuildingtheGulfCoast.gov, for more information.

Before moving on to another topic, I give the business leaders I meet a challenge. The business community has already done great good. My wish is that American businesses will remain at the front of the effort to rebuild New Orleans.

America’s entrepreneurs can now find tremendous opportunities on the Gulf Coast. The people need basic businesses. They need goods and services. The business sector can meet those needs.

There may be no better place in the country in which to invest and do business than New Orleans.

That is the way, ultimately, we can help them rebuild, invest, and create jobs. That is how we will restore hope and promise to their lives. And because the needs are so great, we also need to be certain that every dollar is spent wisely.

That means the Congress must seek lower spending in other parts of the budget to help the taxpayers absorb the costs from Katrina and Rita.

A fertile climate for business begins with sound fiscal and monetary policies. President Bush’s tax relief gave Americans incentives to save and invest. Some said that we couldn’t “afford” tax relief. But we couldn’t have afforded not to.

The President led the Congress to lower the tax burden on capital gains and dividends. The market responded. We’ve had sustained economic growth and 4.2 million new jobs since May 2003.

Those results also carry a warning: Raising taxes on business will kill jobs, dampen opportunity, and weaken our economy. Congress must meet our spending obligations in a fiscally responsible way.

Continuing to open markets around the world is another critical element for our economy. Today, some are calling for policies that would isolate America from the global economy. They would damage our exports and lower our standard of living with new barriers to commerce. That would be a huge mistake.

In the U.S. we look outward with a vision of economic engagement. We have always been a country of explorers. We have always been a country of travelers. We have always been a country of business pioneers.

And we should continue reaching out to people around the world with the best products and services available: Goods and services that are made in the USA.

You should all be confident in the future. We will rebuild the Gulf Coast. We will hold down non-security spending. We will encourage entrepreneurship and innovation. We will maintain the strongest economy in the world. Thank you for listening. Now, I’d like to hear from you.