[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 4 (Wednesday, January 8, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S73-S74]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



              United States-Mexico-Canada Trade Agreement

  Mr. President, trade agreements are controversial. They come before 
the Senate and the House infrequently and are usually very hard to 
pass. It takes months and months of work. One of those trade 
agreements, which is known as the USMCA, or the United States-Mexico-
Canada Agreement, or NAFTA 2.0, is one that I have watched carefully. I 
voted for the original NAFTA agreement when I was a Member of the House 
of Representatives. It was not a popular vote among many people in 
Illinois, but I felt that it was the right thing to do. I felt that 
moving the Mexican economy forward, watching it mature, with the 
creation of a middle class, would mean that it would be a more stable 
nation and a nation that would consume many goods produced in the 
United States.
  That happened, but it happened at an expense, too, to be very honest. 
Many companies in the United States saw the low wage rates in Mexico, 
closed their plants in places like Galesburg, IL, and moved operations 
to Mexico. Some moved to China and other places.
  That displacement of jobs was painful. It was hard to explain to 
families that this was a transition that ultimately was for the good of 
all nations involved. If it was your family, you didn't care about the 
good of a nation. You wanted to know if dad had a job.
  The pain we went through over the last 25 years led me into this 
conversation about the USMCA with some skepticism. I didn't want to be 
behind any effort that would ultimately result in more American jobs 
being lost unnecessarily. I am proud to say that this negotiation, 
unlike many things in this town, turned out to be a bipartisan success.
  President Trump presented us with an original version of the USMCA, 
and many of us took exception to some of its contents. I was 
particularly worried about one provision in there relating to the price 
of prescription drugs and some other provisions in the original 
measure. Then, a fulsome negotiation took place. Democrats and 
Republicans sat down. The net result was a positive thing. Just this 
last week, the Senate Finance Committee reported this USMCA by a vote 
of 25 to 3. I believe this bill--this new measure, this new NAFTA--
enjoys broad bipartisan support.
  This morning, I went on a conference call with the agriculture 
leaders of Illinois. I am proud to say we have one of the strongest 
agricultural States in the Nation and some of the best women and men 
who farm our land and produce food and fiber for people to consume all 
across America and around the world. They have gone through some very 
tough times. The President's trade problems with China have hurt us 
especially. Our soybean producers have seen a 93-percent decline in 
their exports of soybeans and soybean products from the State of 
Illinois. They have paid heavily for the decision in this 
administration to cut back on renewable fuels and to issue waivers to 
oil companies so they don't have to blend them in the fuel they sell us 
at gas stations.
  They have seen the decline in the net foreign income, an increase in 
foreign debt, and we have sent aid payments to them, which they 
reluctantly accept as just the only lifeline they have to keep their 
farms in the family.

[[Page S74]]

  They are happy to see that we are moving forward on this new trade 
agreement. A new NAFTA--the USMCA--means the top trading partners of 
the State of Illinois, Mexico and Canada, will have a new lease on a 
relationship that can improve as we increase trade among our nations. 
The three nations will prosper. Our bounty, which we produce in the 
farmlands of Illinois, will be shared with Mexico, Canada, and many 
nations far beyond them. It is a step forward for us.
  I am glad it was done on a bipartisan basis, and I am particularly 
happy to see the overwhelming majority of labor organizations in my 
State of Illinois and in the Nation support the USMCA. It is great to 
have both labor and business and farm communities together in this 
effort.
  It is far from perfect. This is a bill that moves in the right 
direction, and I hope we bring it up for consideration and a vote very 
soon on the floor of the Senate.