[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 13]
[House]
[Pages 17687-17688]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




               VOTE ``NO'' ON THE ANDEAN TRADE AGREEMENT

  (Ms. KAPTUR asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)

[[Page 17688]]


  Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, today I urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' on 
the Andean Trade Agreement, H.R. 1830, which, strangely, will be 
brought up under suspension, which means no debate and no amendment. I 
thought voters put new Democratic leadership in charge of this House to 
stop deals such as this being done in this way.
  H.R. 1830 would extend special duty treatment to certain imports from 
Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru until September 30 of 2009. The 
Andean Accord was originally intended to promote economic growth and 
replace production of illegal drugs in the Andean region. But in 2006, 
the United States had already racked up $10 billion more in deficit 
with these countries, and the last time I looked, that cocaine was 
still coming over our borders from Colombia.
  Mr. Speaker, this deal made on the NAFTA model is a failed model. Not 
a single other trade deal under the NAFTA model has created good or 
better jobs. Because it is based on the NAFTA model, the specific 
provisions are just tinkering at the edges.
  This bill will cost more American jobs, period. How many copies of 
the NAFTA deal must enter this Congress before we finally say no?
  We don't need more Bill Thomas and Tom DeLay-type trade agreements 
being rushed through this House. I urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' on 
1830.
  Let's have a full debate on trade. The American people demand it of 
us.

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