China's Currency Policy

Floor Speech

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Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I thank my colleague from Illinois for his remarks. In a few minutes, we are going to vote on a bill that could actually change the course of how we trade with China. For a decade, getting worse every year, China has taken advantage of America in every way. Currency is at the top of the list, but it has been the theft of intellectual property, it has been the subsidy of indigenous Chinese businesses, it has been monopolizing things such as rare earth, and it has been excluding American products from China when those products would have a competitive advantage. For the first time, this body, in a bipartisan way, has the ability to say enough is enough. Uncle Sam is no longer Uncle Sap. We are going to create fair trade with China.

This relates to our future because it no longer is competition over shoes or clothing or furniture--labor-intensive businesses. It is competition over the most high-end things we do. Our companies can win and create jobs here in America if China plays by the rules and plays fairly. But everyone who has been up close and seen the way the Chinese operate know that will not happen by persuasion, by multilateral talks, by wishing it were so or even by the healing of time. It will only happen if America stands up for itself--for fairness, for equal treatment. For the first time, we have the opportunity to get that to happen.

Some say this is a symbolic bill. It is not. If we pass this bill by a bipartisan majority, I will tell everybody what will happen. The House will vote on something--hopefully strong--and we will have a conference committee with something going to the President's desk. Long before that occurs--long before that occurs--the Chinese will begin to step back from their unfair trade policies. So we can indeed win the trade argument with China.

Some say it will create a trade war. We are already in a trade war, and we are losing. We are getting our clocks cleaned. But we can stop it, and this is the opportunity.

Mr. President, every one of us has spoken to companies that make high-end products throughout our States, and that China competes unfairly and takes jobs and wealth away from America, we know that. No one disputes that. No one disputes that they manipulate currency. No one disputes that they take jobs and wealth unfairly from America. The issue is what to do about it.

Some say talk to the Chinese. We have done that for 7 years. Some say have multilateral agreements. We have tried that; China just doesn't listen. The only way to get China to change its policies is by requiring them to do so by putting in place a system that says: If you don't, the consequences will be worse for you than if you do. That is how China operates. Unfortunately, my belief is the new leadership in China, without any reformers on the executive committee of the Politburo, will get worse, not better, unless we, together, Democrats and Republicans, say to China: Enough is enough.

American workers have said enough is enough. American businesses have said enough is enough. When is the Congress, when is this government going to say enough is enough instead of just twiddling our thumbs and hoping and praying China might change out of the goodness of their hearts? Well, the time is now. This is a unique opportunity not simply to have a symbolic vote. Believe me, this is not at all political to me. Senator Graham and I have tried to keep this a bipartisan issue religiously for 7 years. To me, this is something that relates to the very future of our country, like educating our kids, like creating jobs so that the next generation has a better opportunity than this, like the greatness of America itself.

We are in a tough world. We know that. But America always wins in a tough world. We compete and we survive. The only way we won't is if the deck continues to stay stacked against us. My colleagues, even up the playing field. This legislation will start us on the road to doing that so that our children and our grandchildren will have a better future than they will if we continue the present policies and let China take industry after industry unfairly away from us.

I yield the floor.

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