United States-Taiwan Initiative on 21St-Century Trade First Agreement Implementation Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. WYDEN. Mr. President, in a moment, I am going to put forward a unanimous consent request to pass an important bill exercising Congress's constitutional authority and approving the first modern agreement regulating trade between the United States and Taiwan.

The bill was cosponsored by all 48 Democrats and Republicans on the Ways and Means Committee and was ultimately passed in the House of Representatives by a voice vote. It was originally put forward by Ways and Means Committee Chair Smith and Ranking Member Neal, as well as Senator Crapo and myself as chair and ranking member of the Finance Committee.

Before I make this unanimous consent request on the bipartisan, bicameral bill called the United States-Taiwan Initiative on 21st- Century Trade First Agreement Implementation Act, I want to highlight, for just a couple of minutes, why this bill is so important.

First, the reason behind this proposal, first and foremost, is that the U.S. Congress fully supports deepening our trade relationship with Taiwan and wants to ensure that the recent agreement covering trade facilitation, anti-corruption, and small business is legally sound and durable.

Not only is Taiwan a critical market for U.S. exporters, it is a democracy that shares our values and has strong ties with Oregonians and Americans across the land.

Next, this body wants to be clear that trade agreements are within the constitutional authority of the Congress. One of the ways the Senate demonstrates that is by approving trade agreements like this one.

Finally, the legislation requires greater transparency and consultation, as well as public review for future Taiwan trade agreements. Our workers, our farmers, and our businesses deserve the opportunity to read a trade agreement and understand how it affects them before it is signed by a government official and declared the law of the land. Trade agreements that affect millions of Americans can't be done in the dark. Congress and the American people need to know what is in these agreements and how they benefit American interests.

I look forward to working with the USTR, our point person for trade, to negotiate the bigger-ticket items with Taiwan--issues like digital trade, labor, environment, and agriculture, as outlined in the negotiating mandate. Future agreements need to bulldoze barriers to trade for Oregon exporters and American businesses everywhere, including by cutting red tape like labeling rules and making sure that Taiwan's technical standards don't make it tough for exporters to sell their goods. Involving Congress and the public is going to help the administration identify issues and hold them accountable for breaking down barriers.

This is a proposal that brings both sides together. The Taiwan trade agreement approval bill, as I indicated, passed unanimously in the other body. This trade agreement legislation is a can't-miss opportunity for the U.S. Senate to support Taiwan, clarify Congress's role in trade, and call for more transparency and consultation in future agreements.

Moreover, it needs to be done now. Taiwan is expecting to pass their implementing bill in the next few weeks. It is imperative that we move our bill before the administration moves forward with what is called ``entry into force'' to ensure that the United States gets what it has bargained for.

Let me close by saying that we especially look forward in the future to working with the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. The chairman of the committee, Senator Menendez, and I have been talking about ways to recognize the intersection between foreign relations and global economics. There are a whole host of issues--whether it is supply chains, digital trade, the environment, and the like--where we have an opportunity to really recognize that, in this century, what we have to do is break down barriers. We have to find a way to have a unifying strategy for this country, and that means coming together around foreign relations and global economics. That is what Chairman Menendez and I talked about this evening and in the past, and I look forward to working with all of our colleagues on that.

4004, which was received from the House and is at the desk.

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