United States-Columbia Trade Promotion Agreement Implementation Act

Floor Speech

Ms. BERKLEY. I thank the gentleman from Michigan for yielding me the time.

I rise today to talk about what should be Congress' top priority--jobs, jobs, jobs. The economic downturn has hit my State of Nevada particularly hard, and families are still struggling with record unemployment.

Instead, today, we are debating the job-killing Colombia free trade agreement that will result in more good-paying American jobs being shipped overseas. In fact, this trade agreement, taken together with the Panama and the Korean trade agreements, will cost our Nation over 200,000 more jobs.

How much more job loss can Nevadans be expected to absorb before we stand up and say enough is enough?

Congress needs to get our priorities straight. Job creation needs to be our top priority. We must create a level playing field for the American worker. Last night, the Senate took a step in that direction by voting to stand up to the Chinese Government, whose unfair currency manipulation has cost our Nation over 3 million jobs in the last decade, including over 14,000 jobs in the State of Nevada alone. The House should be following suit. Instead of focusing on a trade agreement that will send more Nevada jobs to foreign countries at a time when we can least afford it, we should reject these job-killing trade agreements and pass the China currency manipulation bill.

Let's get on with the job of Congress, which is to create jobs for the American people, for the American worker.

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