United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement
Floor Speech
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Mr. MARCHANT. Mr. Speaker, if innovation is the lifeblood of our nation's economy, then the Dallas-Fort Worth region might very well be considered our country's heart. World-class research hospitals and several leading pharmaceutical companies call DFW home, where they create life-saving treatments while keeping our local economy strong. Their continued success, however, depends on their access to international marketplaces, especially those in Canada and Mexico. That is why passing the United States Mexico Canada Agreement, or ``USMCA,'' is so important.
One of the biggest concerns that I hear from innovators in my district is the protection of their intellectual property (IP) rights in the international marketplace. President Trump and Trade Ambassador Lighthizer have delivered on this issue by installing robust IP protections into this trade agreement with Canada and Mexico. The USMCA provisions that strengthen patents, copyrights, trademarks, and trade secrets protections mean that innovators can spend less time worrying about protecting their IP rights and more time creating products and Texas jobs.
Not only will this job creation boost the American and Texan economies, but it will also benefit two of our country's strongest trading partners. In 2017, Texas alone exported $127 billion in products to Canada and Mexico, with 72 percent of the materials imported by Texan manufacturers coming from those same countries. The Texas economy flourishes from its trade relationship with these countries, and in the end, trade with Mexico and Canada supports 948,900 jobs in our state.
Many Americans are already living in the strongest economy of their lifetimes, and the USMCA is critical to ensuring that our country's industries can continue to prosper and sell their goods freely and fairly across the globe. I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting its passage and ask that it be brought up for a vote as soon as possible.
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