[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 67 (Thursday, May 19, 2005)]
[House]
[Page H3678]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                                 CAFTA

  (Mr. BLUMENAUER asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute.)
  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Speaker, today most recognize we are part of a 
global economy, probably no more so than in my home State of Oregon. 
Unfortunately, the Central American Free Trade Agreement, CAFTA, is not 
the step forward that new trade agreements should represent.
  For me it is clear that CAFTA does not include adequate environmental 
and labor standards. It is time to put the dispute resolution process 
for labor on the same solid footing as we do for commercial issues. 
Most acknowledge that CAFTA countries lack the financial resources and 
technical expertise to enforce good labor and environmental practices, 
but we are not providing funding that could help overcome these 
obstacles.
  Additionally, CAFTA would seriously harm these countries that rely 
heavily on their agricultural sectors. Our egregious farm bill has 
locked us into subsidies that do not promote free trade and have 
already caused much harm to other countries' farmers. We need to pay 
attention to the hard lessons NAFTA imposed on struggling Mexican 
farmers.
  Couple these issues with our reluctance to help American workers 
hammered by trade and technological change, and CAFTA is not an 
agreement that I can support in its current form.

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