Speeches
Pelosi Statement in Support of Peru Free Trade Agreement
11/07/2007
“Mr. Speaker, I know that this is a difficult issue for
Members to decide upon because it goes right to the heart of family life in
“"I rise in support of the Peru Trade Agreement, and I
want to tell my colleagues why. They
will have to make up their own minds.
“When I saw an opportunity for us to have labor and
environmental standards as a core part of out trade agreements, it marked a
drastic difference from what even a Democratic President was willing to give on
that score, even a Democratic President.
We couldn’t get that in the Clinton Administration.
“So here we are today trying to make some distinctions,
trying to make some distinctions about trade agreements, that some are better
than others. I don’t think any of them
are perfect on either end.
“I certainly believe that part of the legacy of our great
party is the legacy of President John F. Kennedy, who said that free trade was
a part of who we are as a country and that international trade would be good
for our economy. But we want not only
free trade, we want fair trade.
“We are going to be Uncle Sam instead of ‘Uncle Sap’ in
these trade relationships. It has to
fair. It has to be right for our
workers.
“We recognize the fear and apprehension and uncertainty that
exists in many families and homes across America because of their jobs going
overseas, with businesses closing, communities having a downturn, and people
who can’t sell their homes, all the consequences that go with that. The Chairman of the Ways and Means Committee
put forth legislation that passed the House last week, which I hope the
President of the
“I think it’s essential if we’re going to accomplish
anything on trade, on immigration, on anything else, that people know that we
share the concerns that they have and that we’re doing something about it. So the trade adjustment assistance bill, in
terms of providing job training and opportunity and health care, is very
important.
“We certainly have to be concerned about the impact of
trade. It’s self-evident and it is a
challenge for us. But we cannot turn our
backs on it. And I absolutely refuse to have the Democratic Party be viewed,
and I say this to my Republican colleagues, I don’t want this party to be
viewed as an anti-trade party.
“So let’s make some distinctions. Take every trade agreement on its own
merit. The Peru Free Trade Agreement
rises to the level of acceptance. I am
not saying it is perfect. It rises to the level of acceptance. Labor and environmental principles are in the
core of the bill. Other changes we
wanted to see were made by the Congress in
“So if you’re ever going to support any trade agreement, I
would think this would be the easiest one to do. Other trade agreements have other obstacles
that have to be dealt with.
“It is frustrating, and I respect everything that has been
said by my colleagues in this debate. I
think it is all legitimate. Some, like Marcy Kaptur, have been in this fight
for a long time. Families of
“But again, viewing in the context of we want an economy
that is fairer, that we have a progressive economic agenda where many more
people participate in the economic success of our country. That’s why we raised the minimum wage, made
college more affordable, etc. And that’s
why we’re promoting our Innovation Agenda for energy security and reversing
global warming so that we can create many more jobs, so
“This is a bigger picture than the Peru Free Trade
Agreement. The Peru Free Trade Agreement
is not a big deal in terms of trade agreements.
But it’s an important step in saying we can make distinctions about
trade relationships. They’re grossly
unfair to the American worker, greatly oppressive to the workers in their own
countries, and are not making people freer.
And to those that are in furtherance of growing our own economy while
helping to lift other economies in the world, I think in this case the Peru
Free Trade Agreement goes in that direction.
“So that is why, my colleagues, I’m supporting this. It may seem to be a departure to some of you
to where I’ve been on other trade agreements, but it is a marked difference
from where we were before, whether it was President Bush One, whether it was
President Clinton, and where we are now.
“Those many who have been on one side or the other of this
all say it’s an amazing accomplishment to have gotten that done. And for that, whatever the outcome of this
vote is, I once again want to pay tribute to Chairman Rangel and Chairman
Levin, chairman of the subcommittee, for the great leadership of the work they
did. I just wanted you to know why I was
supporting this bill.”