[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 88 (Monday, May 22, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Page S3053]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                  North American Free Trade Agreement

  Mr. President, on another note, last week, the administration sent 
official notice to Congress of its intent to renegotiate the North 
American Free Trade Agreement, or NAFTA. It was a big part of President 
Trump's campaign platform that the United States needed smarter, fairer 
trade deals that benefit more Americans. I certainly agree with that 
principle.
  I do think, in some quarters, NAFTA has been unfairly maligned. But 
it is true that it is 23 years old, and it needs to be modernized. I 
think all of us can rally around that, consistent with the principle in 
President Trump's campaign that America needs smarter, fairer trade 
deals that benefit more Americans.
  Free trade has, after all, been a boon to the American economy--and 
certainly the Texas economy because we are the No. 1 exporting State in 
the Nation. Our farmers, ranchers, and small business owners have 
benefited from trade agreements, particularly NAFTA, that help them 
send more of the products they raise, grow, and build to more markets 
around the world, principally to Canada and Mexico; but certainly, 
other trade agreements allow those manufactured goods, stock raised, 
and produce grown to go to markets around the world.
  We comprise in America about 5 percent of the potential markets in 
the world, so 95 percent is the rest of the world and a market to buy 
the things we make and grow and raise here. Why not help create more 
jobs and a stronger economy here at home by encouraging that kind of 
free and fair trade?
  There has been significant growth in exports since NAFTA was agreed 
to 23 years ago. Of course, Mexico continues to be an important 
economic partner, helping my State, Texas, grow and specifically 
creating a vibrant ecosystem along the border, but the rest of the 
country benefits too.
  The national Chamber of Commerce estimates that there are 5 million 
American jobs as a result of binational trade with Mexico. With Canada, 
it is about 8 million. Why in the world would we want to do anything to 
jeopardize that? I suggest we don't.
  Free trade doesn't just mean more opportunities for our agricultural 
sector or business owners, but it also helps American families buy more 
affordable products here at home, too, and that is why we need to make 
sure that any changes to NAFTA are improvements to the overall 
agreement.
  I was encouraged just this last week when Ambassador Lighthizer, the 
U.S. Trade Representative, and Secretary of Commerce Ross met with 
members of the Senate Finance Committee. Essentially, what they said is 
that their first principle, when it comes to renegotiating NAFTA, is to 
do no harm. That is a pretty good rule of thumb. In fact, it reminds me 
of the Hippocratic Oath that doctors take when treating patients: 
First, do no harm. Well, I believe that is a good place to start.
  Over the last two decades under this agreement, the economy in my 
State of Texas--which has been the engine that has been pulling the 
national economy in many respects--has grown significantly because of 
the tremendous access afforded by trade. We have to be careful not to 
do any harm to that and to look for ways to improve it.
  There is no denying that this agreement is an old one created well 
before the digital and global economy of today. It was written before 
the energy renaissance in North America occurred, whereby instead of 
peak energy production--which is what we thought we had reached--we now 
have so much natural gas and oil that we export it to the world. That 
is great for jobs here at home. It is great to be able to do that for 
our allies around the world who need a dependable, alternative supply 
of energy in many respects, rather than being the victims of energy 
being used as a weapon against them. So the energy renaissance is 
another good reason that updating NAFTA makes sense.
  I look forward to working with the President and his team to take 
great care that any efforts to modernize NAFTA don't sacrifice the 
benefits we have enjoyed for the last two decades. Hopefully, we can 
modernize it in a way that will allow more Americans to take advantage 
of it, and our economy will continue to grow and prosper as a result.