Rep. Kirk Voted Against Cracking Down on China's Illegal Trade Practices that Led to Clean Energy Advantage

Press Release

U.S. Senate nominee Alexi Giannoulias today demanded China be held accountable for providing illegal clean energy subsidies that violate World Trade Organization rules and criticized Congressman Mark Kirk for his repeated support of policies that have benefited China and killed American jobs.

"When you hear Congressman Kirk talk about job creation, he's talking about jobs he created in China," said Giannoulias while visiting Earth, Wind and Solar Energy, LLC, a small business specializing in renewable energy training, education and installation. "Congressman Kirk has bowed to the corporate special interests that fund his campaigns, voting again and again to help companies ship jobs overseas to China while small businesses here are struggling to access capital and create jobs right at home."

Just this week, the United Steelworkers filed a case with the U.S. Trade Representative detailing China's illegal subsidization of clean energy equipment. The WTO has ruled against China on these issues in the past, and Giannoulias strongly supports the renewed effort to hold China accountable and restore some fairness to international trade.

"My opponent has spent two decades in Washington DC, and his feelings toward China's practices couldn't be more clear -- he voted against legislation to crack down on China's anti-competitive trade policies, and he voted against requiring an investigation of China's currency manipulation," said Giannoulias. "That's not the kind of leadership we need."

Giannoulias believes that as the United States emerges from the recession, policies enacted today must set a solid foundation for the economic growth of tomorrow. In his Future Works plan, which can be read in full at www.alexiforillinois.com, he details his comprehensive plan to turn Illinois' economy around in part by investing now in the clean energy jobs of tomorrow. These are good-paying positions that can't be outsourced and that modernize the country's energy policy and creates jobs.

In Illinois alone, there are more than 2,500 companies that have created more than 28,000 clean energy jobs. Businesses that build solar panels, wind turbines, weatherize homes, build a more efficient electricity grid that reaches every corner of Illinois, and produce energy from waste. Earth, Wind and Solar, Inc installed the first solar home ever in Joliet, IL on Saturday. It is a stop on the Illinois Solar Energy Association's Solar Tour in October that features 175 green businesses and homes throughout the Chicagoland area.

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