[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 132 (Monday, September 28, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1842-E1843]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


           RECIPROCAL TRADE AGREEMENT AUTHORITIES ACT OF 1997

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                               speech of

                            HON. LANE EVANS

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, September 25, 1998

  Mr. EVANS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in opposition to granting fast 
track trade negotiating authority. I oppose this legislation because of 
the adverse effects that the North American Free Trade Agreement 
(NAFTA), which was negotiated under ``fast track'' authority, has had 
upon working American families.
  There is no question that NAFTA's track record has had an adverse 
effect on U.S. wages. This country has lost over a quarter of a million 
jobs. In my home state of Illinois, 23 companies have moved to Mexico 
as a result of NAFTA. Instead of the old, failed ``fast track'', we 
need a trade negotiating authority that gives the President the tools 
to negotiate trade agreements that reflect the wishes of most 
Americans--fair, responsible trade that protects the environment, 
working families and public health.
  We have much to lose with this vote. U.S. taxpayers have invested 
billions to establish and maintain one of the safest food supplies in 
the world. Yet we undermine consumer protection by allowing food to be 
imported from countries where health and safety standards either do not 
exist or are not enforced. Under NAFTA, food imports from Mexico and 
Canada have dramatically overburdened the Food and Drug 
Administration's ability to adequately inspect food imports. More and 
more we hear of illnesses caused from foreign foods. We need to make 
international bodies and foreign governments with weaker standards 
accountable if we are to protect the health of all Americans. Granting 
fast track authority will only threaten the safety of our food supply.
  As a representative from the Corn Belt, I understand our farmers are 
struggling through tough times with commodity prices that are the 
lowest they've been in years. However, trade negotiations take years. 
Our farmers need immediate relief. We should be looking at ways to put 
money in their pockets where they most need it and ways to help our 
trading partners get back on their economic feet. Fast track is not the 
cure-all to the farm crisis, it is, at the moment, a distraction.
  Without labor, food safety, and environmental provisions in the fast 
track legislation, we have no guarantee that these issues will ever be 
addressed. I am not willing to risk the health and safety of my 
constituents on an authority that cannot safeguard their well-being.

[[Page E1843]]

Lets fix the problems we have with unfair trade negotiations, lets not 
add to them. I urge all my colleagues to vote no on fast track.

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