Secretary's Speech

Secretary of Commerce Carlos M. Gutierrez
Remarks at The National Summit on American Competitiveness
Washington, D.C.

On behalf of President Bush and the Department of Commerce, it is my pleasure to welcome you to the National Summit on American Competitiveness.

For the first time in our lifetimes, every major country around the world is competing. Every country is innovating. Worldwide growth is unprecedented. China, India, Russia. . . everyone is in the game. Today, we’re here to discuss how America competes and wins in this environment.

We will discuss our strengths, our challenges and strategies to keep us the most competitive large economy in the world.

America has one overarching competitive advantage—freedom. The spark of invention happens here more than anywhere else because we place a premium on being free. We are free to think, invent, explore, invest and make mistakes and start all over again.

This has made the American way of life attractive to innovators and explorers of new ideas and concepts. Many of whom have come here from all over the world because of our freedoms.

As a result, we lead in the arts, sciences, economics and most every field of creative endeavor.

Government’s role in maintaining competitiveness is to create an environment that encourages entrepreneurship, innovation and investment by the private sector. Not to add regulatory hurdles, increase taxes and reduce immigration.

While some argue that America’s economy needs more business regulation, higher taxes, increased trade and border barriers—we believe the opposite is true. How we answer these questions will determine our competitiveness for years to come.

Our economy is strong. American competitiveness is strong. How do we make it even stronger?

We are at our best when we are leading internationally and we are engaged. Now is not the time to roll back America’s openness or become isolationists.

The way to increase our competitiveness and create American jobs is not to close off our markets. They need to remain open. We are leaders in the world economy and we need to set the example.

The President believes that opening markets around the world will increase American competitiveness.

Our free trade agenda along with other elements of the Administration’s pro-growth policies, have contributed to an economy that is strong:

• We are on track to meet the President’s goal of eliminating the budget deficit by 2012 without raising taxes;
• 8.2 million new jobs have been created in the last four years;
• Unemployment is 4.6 percent, below the average of the last four decades;
• Exports last year were a record $1.4 trillion, and they are growing this year at a double-digit rate, with exports outpacing the growth of imports;
• We have the most productive workers in the world; and
• More than five years of uninterrupted GDP growth, including a four percent rate of growth last quarter.

This is impressive under any circumstance—yet think about what we have been through:

• A major terrorist attack;
• A global war on terror;
• A stock market crash and corporate scandals;
• Hurricane Katrina;
• Increases in the price of energy and commodities;
• And now a housing market correction.

The question is what else can we do to keep America competitive? There are a number of ways the government can help create an environment where private enterprise and good ideas can thrive.

After our opening panel, which will frame today’s discussions, we will follow with three panels:

• Developing a workforce for a 21^st century economy;
• Encouraging innovation; and
• Meeting our future energy needs.

We are fortunate to have with us Secretary Spellings from the Department of Education and Secretary Chao from the Department of Labor to discuss the education, development and preparation of our workforce.

In my experience the most valuable asset any organization has is people. With the right people, anything is possible. That’s why it’s critical we make good choices today about creating the workforce we’ll need tomorrow.

There are a number of Administration initiatives specifically designed to improve educational performance such as No Child Left Behind and portions of the America Competes Act.

I’m looking forward to hearing the perspectives of some of our nation’s top educators, as well as from business leaders that employ millions of Americans.

If there is one thing we have learned in 230 years is that welcoming immigrants, both high and low-skilled, with the energy, drive and enthusiasm to participate in our society, has made us stronger.

We will not be truly competitive without comprehensive immigration reform. I hope that this will be part of the discussion today.

A confident nation is a welcoming one. We need not be threatened by those who want to join us as they seek the American dream.

Their presence makes America more competitive, with the brain and the brawn of those not born here strengthening the nation with their talents and abilities.

While government has long collaborated with research labs and academic institutions, there’s a need to better foster the commercialization of the inventions that result from those partnerships.

From gene therapy to nanotechnology, the next big thing, much like the last one—the internet—may be the product of a public-private partnership.

There are a number of ways government helps this process:

• The America Competes Act fully funds the National Science Foundation, the Office of Science in the Department of Energy, and the National Institute of Standards and Technology here at the Department of Commerce.
• There are proposals now pending in Congress that take a fresh look at patent and trademark law. While our system has been a catalyst for inventors, it needs to be focused now on providing effective protection for the kind of innovations that are changing the world today.
• Because innovation is transforming our economy, we need to do a better job of measuring it. I have asked Carl Schramm, who is today’s luncheon speaker, to chair the Advisory Committee on Measuring Innovation. The committee’s recommendations, due to be released later this year, will help us make better and more informed policy choices.
• Another area is in the measurement of the services sector of our economy. Two-thirds of private sector output is produced in the services sector, but our surveys don’t cover that. We need to catch up with the reality of our economy and better measure services contributions.

John Marburger who is the director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy will lead our discussion on innovation this afternoon.

Access to reliable, affordable and sustainable energy supplies is critical to maintaining a competitive economy.

And it will be the private sector that turns ideas into products and jobs.

Fortunately, we are developing cutting edge technologies that will help our country and the world.

While some suggest taxing energy producers and consumers is the way to become more efficient, the President is setting realistic goals that won’t burden the economy and will encourage investment.

Over the past 30 years, our economy has grown three times faster than our energy consumption. However,

• It’s been more than 30 years since the last oil refinery was built in the U.S.
• It’s been 11 years since our newest nuclear power plant came online.
• And we have not enabled or encouraged the responsible exploration of our own resources.

The President is working to meet America’s energy demands and the challenges of the global economy by developing clean, domestic, affordable supplies of energy.

The President believes we can do this with technology. Technology and investment will get the job done—not taxes and regulation.

• He has set an ambitious goal of reducing oil consumption by 20 percent in 10 years, and I have no doubt we can achieve that objective. And, we can do this and maintain a clean environment. In fact:
• During the past 30 years our economy created more than 55 million jobs, while cutting air pollution by 50 percent.
• The U.S. is seeing the same rate of progress in slowing the growth of greenhouse gases, if not better, than our European counterparts.
• In 2006, CO₂ intensity declined by 4.1 percent. Meeting the President’s 18 percent reduction goal by 2012 roughly requires an annual improvement of two percent—we are well on track to meet, and possibly exceed, that goal.

Leading our discussion on energy competitiveness is the Chairman of the Council on Environmental Quality and Director of the White House Office of Environmental Policy, Jim Connaughton.

With a focus on clean energy technology, a renewed interest in civilian nuclear energy, and the development of commercial biofuels, the U.S. energy industry can be another source of strength.

Let me close by saying that all of these challenges are also opportunities. Our nation has thrived on meeting challenges and finding solutions.

The aspirations of 30 years ago have to a large degree been achieved. There is more freedom, more trade, more investment and more prosperity in a growing world economy than ever before. This should be our best time. This is the playing field we have not only sought, but have played a large role in creating.

Now, to truly excel, we need to look outward and create an environment that encourages innovation, private sector investment, entrepreneurship and the creation of new businesses.

One of America’s greatest attributes is being open to new ideas, and I hope that during the course of the day you’ll share your ideas and leave here with new approaches to sharpening our nation’s competitive edge. Thank you.