[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 5]
[Senate]
[Page 6687]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                                 TRADE

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I was glad to see our Democratic 
friends accept our path forward on trade yesterday. Under our plan, the 
Senate will avoid the poison pills that had been floated in favor of 
the very type of bipartisan approach we have been advocating for all 
along. It follows the regular order. It allows Senators to express 
themselves without endangering more American trade jobs for the people 
we represent.
  So this is good news. It is good news for bipartisanship. It is good 
news for a new Congress that is getting back to work. And it is good 
news for America's middle class.
  The people we represent deserve the kind of good jobs we could secure 
by knocking down unfair trade barriers. One estimate shows that trade 
agreements with Europe and the Pacific could support as many as 1.4 
million additional jobs here in our country. In Kentucky, they can 
support more than 18,000 additional jobs.
  But we can't get there without first passing the kind of legislation 
we will vote to open debate on this afternoon. It is the only way to 
enact clear standards and guidelines that our trade negotiators need to 
move forward, and that Congress needs to appropriately assert its 
authority in this area.
  So yesterday's agreement is significant. I thank Chairman Hatch and 
his negotiating partners for the good, bipartisan cooperation that got 
us to where we are.
  I would like to thank the President, too. No, you are not hearing 
things. President Obama has done his country a service by taking on his 
base and pushing back on some of the more ridiculous rhetoric we have 
heard. He was right to remind everyone that ``you don't make change 
through slogans'' or ``ignoring realities.'' He should be recognized 
for it.
  The American people sent a divided government to Washington. But it 
doesn't mean they don't want us to work together on issues where we can 
agree. And on this issue, we do agree.
  Today's vote brings us closer to achieving a positive outcome for the 
people we represent. I look forward to continued positive engagement 
from both the President and Members of both parties as we move forward 
on these bills.

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