|
Sherrod Brown gets it on trade. The nice thing is that he got
elected on trade, showing that the polls of the populace translate into
elected candidates.
Thomas Friedman may like every trade
agreement he has ever seen, and his regular columnist position at the
New York Times gives him a broad reach. But, ultimately, he has
only one vote. And no vote in 49 of the states.
Just so you know what I mean about Friedman, he was caught on tape saying this:
"We got this free market, and I admit, I was speaking out in
Minnesota--my hometown, in fact, and guy stood up in the audience,
said, `Mr. Friedman, is there any free trade agreement you'd oppose?' I
said, `No, absolutely not.' I said, `You know what, sir? I wrote a
column supporting the CAFTA, the Caribbean Free Trade initiative. I
didn't even know what was in it. I just knew two words: free
trade."
Brown's
op-ed appeared in yesterday's Cincinnati Enquirer. The full op-ed
is below the fold. But here are a couple notable quotes, as he
defends protecting America.
Some 40 percent of the economy is still government-owned and
provides a continuing source of revenue and employment. These
state-owned enterprises enjoy a wide variety of government-provided
subsidies, from cheap land, below-market rate loans and loan
forgiveness, to lax enforcement of environmental laws and worker
protections. American-owned corporations also enjoy many of these
benefits and are able to make products in China for export at an
artificially low cost, which can inevitably make these corporations
beholden to the various governments and to the Communist Party for many
subsidies.
We do not compete with Chinese companies. We compete with
their government. The colonists at the Boston Tea Party protested
because the East India Company/British Government joint venture was
imposed upon them through parliamentary decision making. China's
economy is the East India Company on steroids.
And here's a good thing.
This fall I will introduce legislation to require enforceable
country-of-origin labeling on imported food. The law already mandates
some country-of-origin labeling but the Bush administration, at the
behest of large beef processors, has refused to enforce it. My bill
will also require importers of record to post a safety bond of
insurance to protect themselves - and the public - from hugely
expensive product recalls and liability.
We fought the meat packer lobby long and hard just to get country of
origin labeling on a few foodstuffs: meat, produce and seafood.
It's the law, but the packer lobbyists prevented it from being
implemented for meat and produce.
Do you find yourself
looking at labels more these days? Your shrimp, for
example? Or catfish? If U.S. companies want to sell cheap
food from countries without regulation, they can inform us even as they
make their profits.
*** Cincinnati Enquirer 9/2/07
Trade? Yes, but demand product safety
U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH)
Anyone who disagrees with America's trade experts is labeled a protectionist. As if that's a bad word.
What is wrong with United States trade policy protecting American
workers? Or protecting our communities? Or how about our trade laws
protecting our families from unsafe Chinese food imports or our
children from toys coated with lead-based paint?
Last year, the United States imported $288 billion of goods - much of
it food, toys, and ingredients for toothpaste, vitamins, and dog food -
from the People's Republic of China, a country with weak and unenforced
health and safety regulations. And as recent news reports document,
tens of millions of dangerous toys are being recalled, contaminated dog
food is being destroyed, and cough syrup and vitamins are suspect;
there are even warnings about children's books.
Our country has worked hard to build safe work places, a reliably
healthy food supply, and pure drinking water. For a hundred years,
legislators and governors, county commissioners and senators, have
taken on some of the world's most powerful corporations - chemical
companies, agribusinesses, automakers - to make our cars safer and our
air and food cleaner.
Unrestricted, unregulated free trade with China - with no protections - threatens these gains and jeopardizes our public health.
There is little interest among the Chinese in changing the way we and
they do business. Why would they when China's bilateral trade surplus
with the United States may approach $300 billion this year? The Chinese
government at all levels - and the Communist Party - resist
jeopardizing the flow of profits into government treasuries and the
pockets of party officials and government authorities.
Some 40 percent of the economy is still government-owned and provides a
continuing source of revenue and employment. These state-owned
enterprises enjoy a wide variety of government-provided subsidies, from
cheap land, below-market rate loans and loan forgiveness, to lax
enforcement of environmental laws and worker protections.
American-owned corporations also enjoy many of these benefits and are
able to make products in China for export at an artificially low cost,
which can inevitably make these corporations beholden to the various
governments and to the Communist Party for many subsidies.
So what is to be done? Since the Communist government has ruled out
third-party inspections and U.S. consumer product and food inspectors
on Chinese soil, we have two choices - either buy less, much less from
China or license certain importers and hold them responsible for the
safety of the products they bring into our country.
This fall I will introduce legislation to require enforceable
country-of-origin labeling on imported food. The law already mandates
some country-of-origin labeling but the Bush administration, at the
behest of large beef processors, has refused to enforce it. My bill
will also require importers of record to post a safety bond of
insurance to protect themselves - and the public - from hugely
expensive product recalls and liability.
In addition, we need to increase the number of inspectors at the Food
and Drug Administration, the Department of Agriculture, and the
Consumer Products Safety Commission. And stop hiring inspectors who
used to work for the regulating industry or have plans to return there.
Everyone agrees: We all want more trade with countries across the
world. But let's protect the safety and health of our children and our
families first.
Sherrod Brown, a Democrat from Avon, Ohio, is a U.S. senator representing Ohio.
Trackback(0)
 |
TrackBack URI for this entry
Subscribe to this comment's feed