    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2005, Book I)]
    [June 23, 2005]
    [Pages 1057-1058]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks on the Dominican Republic-Central America-United States Free
    Trade Agreement
    June 23, 2005

        Thank you all for coming. Please be seated. I want to thank the
    Democratic and Republican leaders who have come here today to support
    the Central American-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement known as
    CAFTA. As you can see, there are former Cabinet members of both
    Republican and Democrat Presidents, former staff members of Republican
    and Democrat Presidents, people who have said it is time to set aside
    political differences and focus on this very important trade agreement
    for the good of our country. And I want to thank you all for coming. I
    appreciate our visit. I appreciate the chance to hear your point of view
    about what we need to do together to get this bill passed.
        I want to thank the members of my Cabinet who are here. I appreciate
    you all coming. I particularly want to say thanks to Ambassador Rob
    Portman, who is the U.S. Trade
    Representative. He is the point person in the Bush administration to get
    this bill passed. He's working hard. He's working smart, and with your
    help and the help of those on the stage, I'm confident that Congress
    will do the right thing.
        The reason we're here is because we share an interest in promoting
    opportunity and prosperity here at home. All of us understand that
    strengthening our economic ties with our democratic neighbors is a vital
    issue of national importance. All of us urge Congress to pass the
    agreement because America has an interest in strengthening democracy and
    advancing prosperity in our hemisphere.
        One of the surest ways to strengthen democracy and advance
    prosperity is by establish a trading system based on clear rules. My
    predecessors from both parties, former Presidents from both political
    parties, pursued this goal at all levels--at the global level, at the
    bilateral level, and at the regional level. Today, CAFTA presents us
    with an historic opportunity to advance a free and fair trading system
    that will bring benefits to all sides.
        I want to thank the members of the diplomatic corps from Central
    America who have joined us today. Los Embajadores, bienvenidos. Thank
    you for coming.
        These Ambassadors understand what I just said. I said, this trade
    agreement benefits both sides. It's a good deal for the CAFTA countries,
    and it's a good deal for America as well.
        It's a good deal for America because CAFTA will help level the
    playing field for our goods and services. Under existing rules, nearly
    80 percent of imports from Central America and the Dominican Republic
    already enter the United States duty free. But U.S. exports into the
    region face heavy tariffs. Let me repeat that: 80 percent of goods
    produced in Central America come into our country, come into the United
    States duty-free. Yet the same isn't--it's not the same for American
    products.
        By passing CAFTA, the United States would open up a market of 44
    million consumers for our farmers and small-business people and
    entrepreneurs. By lowering barriers in key segments like textiles, CAFTA
    will put our region in a better position to compete with low-cost
    producers in Asia.
        For the young democracies of Central America and the Dominican
    Republic, CAFTA would continue the current trade benefits. That means
    good jobs and higher labor standards for their workers. And because of
    reduced tariffs on U.S. goods, consumers in these countries would have
    access to better goods at lower prices. And that brings us a step closer
    to our goal of an Americas where the opportunities in

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    San Jose, Costa Rica, are as real as they are in San Jose, California.
        People have got to understand that by promoting policy that will
    help generate wealth in Central America, we're promoting policy that
    will mean someone is less--more likely to stay at home to find a job. If
    you're concerned about immigration to this country, then you must
    understand that CAFTA and the benefits of CAFTA will help create new
    opportunity in Central American countries, which will mean someone will
    be able to find good work at home, somebody will be able to provide for
    their family at home, as opposed to having to make the long trip to the
    United States. CAFTA is good immigration policy as well as good trade
    policy.
        And it's good geopolitics as well. For the Western Hemisphere, CAFTA
    would bring the stability and security that can only come from freedom.
    That's what we're interested in. We're interested in spreading freedom.
    Today, a part of the world that was once characterized by oppression and
    military dictatorship sees its future in democratic elections and free
    and fair trade, and we cannot take these gains for granted. These small
    nations are making big and brave commitments, and America must continue
    to support them. And CAFTA is a good way to support them. CAFTA is good
    for our workers. It's good for our farmers. It's good for our small-
    business people, but it's equally as good for the folks in Central
    America.
        By transforming our hemisphere into a powerful trading area, CAFTA
    will help promote democracy, security, and prosperity. The United States
    was built on freedom, and the more of it we have in our own backyard,
    the freer and safer and more prosperous America will be. The leaders
    from both parties here today share this vision.
        These folks, who toiled in the vineyards of good international
    politics and worked in the White House know exactly what I'm talking
    about. That's why they're standing up here and saying with common voice
    to the United States Congress, ``Let's get this bill passed.'' See,
    CAFTA is more than a trade agreement; it is a signal of our Nation's
    commitment to democracy and prosperity for the entire Western
    Hemisphere. And I urge, and we urge, the United States Congress to pass
    CAFTA.
        Thanks for coming.

    Note: The President spoke at 1:43 p.m. in Room 450 of the Dwight D.
    Eisenhower Executive Office Building. The Office of the Press Secretary
    also released a Spanish language transcript of these remarks.