[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 152 (Wednesday, October 12, 2011)]
[House]
[Page H6794]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     PASS THE FREE TRADE AGREEMENTS

  (Mr. DOLD asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. DOLD. Mr. Speaker, unemployment numbers just came out for our 
country; and again we see the country at 9.1 percent unemployment. The 
number one issue that we face here in this body and this government, I 
would argue, is jobs and the economy.
  This week we have an opportunity to come together in a bipartisan 
fashion. The President has talked about the trade agreements with both 
South Korea, Colombia, and Panama; and I think this is an opportunity 
for us to be able to level the playing field to allow the American 
worker to win.
  We know that if we level the playing field, the American worker can 
win; and we know that if we take South Korea alone, this is an 
opportunity for us to add $10 billion to our GDP. For every billion 
dollars that we send in exports, we create 6,250 jobs right here at 
home. Seventy-three percent of the dollars are outside of the United 
States and 95 percent of the consumers.
  We want to make sure that we're selling America abroad. This is an 
opportunity for us to put American workers back to work, try to lower 
the unemployment rate from 9.1 percent, and move the country forward.
  I ask my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to come together today 
and this week to pass the free trade agreements and move our country 
ahead.

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