United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement Implementation Act
Floor Speech
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Mr. ARRINGTON. Madam Speaker, I couldn't have said that better myself. I thank the ranking member, my dear friend from the great State of Texas, for his leadership on this very important trade deal, our largest and most important relationship of all of our trading relationships.
I thank our chairman, Chairman Neal, for keeping this thing on track and keeping people in the game so we could have a bipartisan consensus. That is the only way this could work, so the chairman is to be commended for his efforts.
But let's give credit where credit is due, for the one who led the charge, who did the heavy lifting, our President, Donald J. Trump. I am saying this because in 2016, he was already calling out some of these trade deals as a rip-off of American workers and manufacturers.
While NAFTA was a great deal for farmers and ranchers, we saw a 400 percent increase in trade for ag products since the inception of NAFTA. It hasn't been good all the way around. It hasn't been fair all the way around. It hasn't been productive, in terms of keeping jobs here in the United States.
So kudos to our President for his dogged commitment to American-first trade policies. That doesn't mean America only. It means that we negotiate from strength, and we negotiate what is in the best interest of American workers, manufacturers, and farmers.
That is what this does: $70 billion in economic growth, 170,000 jobs, and billions in investment that will go into the auto manufacturing sector.
Our producers, dairy producers and other farmers, are going to have open access to new customers in Canada, so this is a huge win for America.
I want to join all my colleagues, Republican and Democrat, and champion this all the way through. So I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle, vote ``yes'' for USMCA, and vote for an even greater America and an even greater prospect for American prosperity.
God bless America.
Go west Texas.
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