[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 154 (Friday, October 14, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1872]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    THE PASSAGE OF THE COLOMBIA, PANAMA AND SOUTH KOREA FREE TRADE 
                               AGREEMENTS

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. DAN BURTON

                               of indiana

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, October 14, 2011

  Mr. BURTON of Indiana. Mr. Speaker, I rise in favor of all three free 
trade agreements that we passed this week. I have been a strong 
supporter of these agreements for as long as we have been waiting for 
them to be submitted to Congress. This is a real jobs bill that will 
certainly help our economy and help people get back to work without 
spending a dime of the taxpayer's money.
  As the Administration has sat on these agreements, the United States 
has been left in the wake of our international partners who have been 
able to finalize and benefit from agreements that didn't include us. If 
the United States does not lead in the Global Economy, it will be 
forced to follow and the FTAs represent our most definitive step 
towards leveling the playing field for our workers, farmers, and 
consumers. To continue to thrive as the greatest economy in the world, 
we have to put ourselves into a position to compete.
  These agreements will enable the private sector to create thousands 
of jobs both in my home state of Indiana and in the United States at 
large. In Indiana, Hoosiers should particularly benefit, given that we 
have seen a 138 percent increase in exports over the past thirteen 
years. These free trade agreements will cause this number to skyrocket 
as tariffs and penalties are removed for U.S. companies making capital 
available to create more jobs. This is further demonstrated by the fact 
that 42 percent of all U.S. jobs are connected to international trade 
and 15,752 jobs in my home district are directly supported by exports. 
By increasing the market share for U.S. companies and eliminating 
barriers and high tariffs, these companies will increase their profits 
and use that money to hire new employees. Every $1 billion in increased 
exports generates an estimated 25,000 new jobs in all sectors of the 
economy. It is no longer enough for us to simply buy American, to 
compete in this harsh environment globally we are going to have to sell 
American as well.
  These free trade agreements are an obvious solution to the problem of 
slow economic growth. This is a package that will actually stimulate, 
unlike others that have been passed before. I commend the passage of 
these agreements. Let's continue to enable America to get back to work.

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