Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to speak out of order for 5 minutes.

Mr. Speaker, I am on the floor again tonight. I have been speaking against CAFTA. I have joined my friends on both the Republican side and the Democratic side who feel that CAFTA is not good for the American workers and not good for the American people and certainly does not help those in Central America.

And tonight I want to take just a few minutes and insert for the Record the entirety of a letter from seven members of the general assemblies down in five of the countries that are opposed to CAFTA.

Mr. Speaker, the gentleman that I met recently is from El Salvador, and this was at a conference last week that the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Brown) and I attended, Interfaith Council of Protestants, Catholics, and also one rabbi to speak in opposition to CAFTA.

Let me just give the first introductory statement. It says: ``Dear Members of the United States Congress, the CAFTA market has fewer than 9.2 million people who can buy U.S. goods.''

Now, this is a long letter. It is signed by seven members of the Central American assemblies, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Guatemala and Honduras.

Mr. Speaker, I want to go to the last paragraph of the letter from those members of the elected bodies of those countries. And this is what it says in the close of their letter, not mine, but their letter: ``CAFTA is a bad trade deal because it puts the interests of international corporations ahead of the welfare of the working poor and the poor in Central America. If CAFTA is approved, the social instability that CAFTA supporters like to use as a reason for approving the agreement will come not from outside forces, but from the pressures created by the millions of displaced workers who will fall further into poverty.''

It is time to say ``no'' to CAFTA and begin negotiating a new trade agreement that takes into account the region's need for development and real opportunity for its citizens. We respectfully ask you for your support of our people and vote ``no'' on CAFTA.

Mr. Speaker, again this is from seven people from different countries who represent their people in Central America who are opposed to this agreement.

Let me now go, in the few minutes I have left, to a joint statement concerning the United States Central American Free Trade Agreement by the Bishops' Secretariat of Central America and the chairman of the Domestic and International Policy Committees of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

And let me just make a few points that they make in their long letter of opposition. First it says: ``In light of the values and principles that we have outlined as well as the situation of the people, we express some of our specific concerns about the potential impact of CAFTA on our countries, especially in Central America.''

I am going to just read a few points: ``There has not been sufficient information and debate in our countries about the various aspects of CAFTA and its impact on our societies.'' Another point: in the area of agriculture, there is insufficient attention given to such sensitive issues as the potential impact that U.S. farm supports on Central America farm products. It seems like that poor farming communities in Central America will suffer greatly when subsidized agricultural products from United States expand their reach into these markets.

Another point made by the bishops: while certain labor and environmental provisions are included in the agreement, it is not clear that the enforcement mechanisms within CAFTA will lead to stronger protections of fundamental worker rights and the environment.

Then there is one other point that I want to read, Mr. Speaker. This, again, was from the Catholic Bishops of Central America and the Catholic Bishops of America: the treaty will have effects on intellectual property rights. The proposed legal framework could jeopardize a right of Central American countries to exercise proper stewardship of their natural resources.

Mr. Speaker, I am here tonight because in my State of North Carolina, I was not here when NAFTA passed back in 1992, enacted in 1993, but we have lost over 200,000 jobs in North Carolina. In the country of America, we have lost better than 2.5 million jobs since NAFTA was enacted in 1993.

I did not vote for Trade Promotion Authority. I did not think President

Bush should have it, nor Clinton. I am not for trying to enable the Chinese to have all of the manufacturing, all of the moneys, and to build their military like they are doing. That is of great concern to many Americans in this country.

Mr. Speaker, to my left there is an article that was in a paper in one of my counties in eastern North Carolina about 4 months ago. And it says: VF Jeanswear closes plant. Operations performed in Wilson, North Carolina, which included fabric cutting and finishing garments will be moved to Central America. Quite frankly, it is going to Honduras.

Four hundred forty-five American citizens lost their jobs. They are going to Central America without even CAFTA. I do not know what it takes for this Congress to understand that if this country becomes a second-rate manufacturing country, then we can place our orders for airplanes and tanks from China.

Mr. Speaker, I hope that I do not live long enough to see that happen. But I am afraid it is going to happen. CAFTA is not good for the American people. It is not even good for the people in these five Central American countries. They need to redraw this amendment. I think I can support an amendment if it were fair to America and fair to Central America.

Let us bury CAFTA next week or this week, and God bless America and our men and women in uniform.

The letter previously referred to follows:

July 19, 2005.

Dear Members of the United States Congress:

The CAFTA Market Has Fewer Than 9.2 Million People Who Can Buy U.S.

Goods

President Bush claims that the CAFTA countries represent a

growing market for U.S. goods. Unfortunately, this claim is

far from the truth. A document prepared by CEPAL (the

Economic Commission for Latin America-United Nations)

entitled, ``Development Objectives of the millennium, A

Glance from Latin America and the Caribbean,'' June 10, 2005,

reveals that of a population of 46 million people in the five

Central American countries and the Dominican Republic, 25.6

million are poor. Only 20.4 million people are considered

non-poor people. These numbers show that the open market of

44 million people that Pres. Bush claims will buy U.S. made

goods does not exist. The majority of Central Americans are

too poor to be able to afford U.S. made goods.

Furthermore, the majority of those who are considered non-

poor (20.4 million people), are not secure market for most of

the higher end goods and services that the North American

companies want to export. This fact has been established by

the same study CEPAL which affirms that 20 percent of those

46 million people, control more of 50 percent of the income;

this can only mean that only 9.2 million people are the real

market for U.S. companies. This is the same market that it is

already shared with companies of the region, Europe and Asian

countries who export to the region.

The low competitive advantage that companies of the Central

American region have (i.e., low technology, high interest

rates on financing, low skilled workforce), compared to the

U.S. companies, will mean that the majority of small and

large domestic firms will be devastated, subsequently

generating more unemployment and less purchasing capacity for

the rest of the population.

As in the case of the agro-business products, the level of

asymmetry between the subsidized U.S. agro-products, and the

non-subsidized Central American products, the situation of

displacement is even worse. On its own account, the U.S.

Department of Commerce forecast that the present levels of

U.S. production will increase by more than 20 billions

dollars in the first nine years of the implementation of

CAFTA. More exports of U.S. goods to the region, while it is

seen as a benefit for U.S. farmers, only means more

displacement of the Central American agricultural production,

the destruction of the already vulnerable food industry

capacity of the region. This further aggravates the levels of

poverty and unemployment of million of central American

farmers in the region, who are already facing a very

difficult economic and social crisis due to the lack of rural

development policies by their own governments.

Therefore based on these facts, we believe the following:

CAFTA will only lead to more social instability in the region

as more medium and small farmers will lose their livelihoods

and become part of the poor population numbers; CAFTA will

bring a weakening of the already vulnerable democratic

processes in Central America as more people are excluded from

the productive sectors of the economy. More exploitation of

workers in the formal sectors of the economy will only lead

to further social unrest all through the region; CAFTA will

only lead to more migration to the U.S. as more people are

unable to make a living working on the rural areas, and the

jobs perspectives in the cities do not improve. The 20

million who are currently poor, and those that will be

further displaced, will turn to immigration to the U.S. as

the only solution to their economic problems. Just like the

U.S. has seen an increase of immigrants from Mexico after

NAFTA, more central American will turn to migration to the

Mr. Speaker, today at 10 o'clock I had the pleasure of being with my good friend the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Brown) as we attended an interfaith alliance meeting of religious leaders across this Nation and outside of America, really, because they were from the five Central American countries that are in the CAFTA agreement.

It was quite an impressive ceremony. We had religious leaders that care about justice and freedom and opportunities, and the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Brown) and I had a chance to speak. I will tell you that these religious leaders from across this Nation, as well as from the Central American countries, are opposed to CAFTA. I am opposed to

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in sadness to note the recent passing of a dear friend and great American, Ben Ball of Morehead City, North Carolina.

Born on October 14, 1956, Ben died too soon at the age of 48. Yet in those 48 years, he led a remarkable life.

After attending Wake Forest University, Ben went on to graduate from East Carolina University and then began a successful 25-year career in the real estate business. He was a member of the Carteret County Association of Realtors where he was named Realtor of the Year in 1981, 1992, and in 2002. The North Carolina Association of Realtors named him State Realtor of the Year in 2003, and he served as President of the North Carolina Association in 1992. From 1991 through this year he served as a State Director of the North Carolina Association of Realtors, and was active in the governmental and political process both in Raleigh and in Washington, DC.

In addition to his professional activities, Ben was a pillar of his community. He was a lifetime member of First United Methodist Church in Morehead City, NC. He was a past President of the Rotary Club of Morehead City, and in 1997 was named Rotarian of the Year. Additionally, he had served for 5 years as Sponsorship Chairman of the Crystal Coast Habitat for Humanity Golf Tournament, served as Past President of the Carteret County Division of the American Heart Association, Past President of the Morehead City Planning Board, and as Past Chairman of the Carteret County Republican Party. Further, he was a volunteer at West Carteret High School, and assisted ``Toys for Tots'' for the past 5 years to help secure over 500 bicycles for local needy children.

Mr. Speaker, I first met Ben many years ago, and knew him as a friend ever since. While Ben was prominent in the community, most importantly--like everyone else who first became acquainted with him through politics, or business, or through community activities--I came to know him not as a political friend, but just as a friend. Period.

He was unfailing supportive, uplifting, and caring toward the many people in his life. His being here on this earth made a difference in ways that we all know, and--I am positive--in countless ways that we will never know.

In times such as this, there are no words that can fill the void in the hearts of his friends and loved ones. While he is now in the loving arms of God, we who are still here miss him.

Ben is survived by his wife, Debbie Carpenter Ball, by his sister Anne Roberts Ball, and by his daughters Debra Kreth Ball and Laura Ryan Ball. They are all in my thoughts and prayers.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Ohio, and I also am delighted to be here in a bipartisan way to do what is right for the American people.

I want to take just a few minutes to talk about my State of North Carolina. We all come from Virginia, from Idaho, from Alabama, from Ohio, and many other States, and there will be others that will be coming here tonight to speak, as the gentleman from Ohio mentioned. I do not know how America can work unless we come together, and certainly one of the major issues is trying to save jobs in America.

I want to go back very briefly to NAFTA. NAFTA was passed in 1992. I was not here. It was implemented in 1993. In my State of North Carolina, because of NAFTA, we have lost over 200,000 manufacturing jobs. In the Nation we have lost more than 2.5 million jobs. That is just because of NAFTA.

And what in the world are we going to do with CAFTA? CAFTA is nothing but a cousin to NAFTA, and NAFTA itself is not well. It is kind of like somebody being sick. NAFTA is sick because it has done nothing to help Americans in this country, and it did nothing to help the Mexicans stay down in Mexico and make a good living wage with benefits so they would not want to come across the border. They are coming across the border now between 8,000 and 10,000 a week.

I want to also say about CAFTA, you cannot have fair trade if both countries do not benefit. Those people that want to have CAFTA to become the law of the land, in my opinion, I say to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Brown), the word is greed. Greed. You cannot help the American people unless you treat our workers fairly, help them maintain their jobs, and not see their jobs sent overseas.

Before yielding, I want to show just two charts to my friends here on the floor. This happened in North Carolina in 2003 and it says, ``Pillowtex Goes Bust, Erasing 6,450 Jobs.'' This happened in one day's announcement, 6,450 jobs lost, gone. The subtitle says, ``Five North Carolina Plants Closing in Largest Single Job Loss in State's History.''

I want to share another blow-up of a news article with my friends on the floor. This is from the Wilson Daily Times. This is a county that Congressman G.K. Butterfield and I share together, it is a split county. And it says, this is about 3 months ago, ``VF Jeanswear Closes Plant, Last 445 Jobs

Gone By Next Summer.'' The two ladies down here at the bottom named Brenda Webb and Shivan Battle, will not be able to chitchat in the parking lot of VF Jeanswear next year when the plant closes. People were actually crying when this announcement was made. They are losing their jobs and their benefits and their hopes and their dreams.

So, Mr. Speaker, I want to say to my friends here tonight on the floor that I look forward to working with my colleagues day in and day out. If CAFTA does come to the floor, hopefully we will be able to defeat it. We have a strong support of Republicans, probably 25 to 30, and I do not think the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Brown) would bend under any circumstances, and I want to thank the gentleman for being the leader he has been. I look forward to continuing to work with the gentleman, and let us do what is right for America and the American people.

Mr. Speaker, I am back on the floor again tonight, just like the gentleman that just spoke. I am from North Carolina, a State I am greatly proud of; but I am so concerned about this CAFTA bill.

I want to just go back to 1992, to the Presidential debates of that year, 1992. I want to quote one of the candidates for the United States Presidency, Ross Perot: ``You implement that NAFTA, the Mexican Trade Agreement, where they pay people a dollar an hour, have no health care, no retirement, no pollution controls, and you are going to hear a giant sucking sound of jobs being pulled out of this country, right at a time when we need the tax base to pay the debt of this Nation.''

Mr. Speaker, what is so ironic about that is that we are in the same situation today. Our Nation is in so much debt, the deficit is about $417 billion, $7 trillion in debt itself; the average citizen of America owes about $26,000 if they were going to pay off the debt of this Nation. How can we continue to send jobs overseas? Already, China has 1.5 million jobs since 1989. NAFTA itself, since we joined in 1993, in North Carolina alone, we have lost 200,000 manufacturing jobs; the United States has lost over 2.5 million manufacturing jobs.

Let me tell my colleagues what is so ironic. So many times when we have these debates, they say, well, if you create a better opportunity down in Guatemala, or whatever country it might be, then they are going to stay home. Let me tell my colleagues how ironic and ridiculous that is. The number of aliens has grown from 1.3 million people in 1992; that was the one year before NAFTA. Since NAFTA, 5.9 million illegal aliens have come across the border, and that is just for the year 2004. That is a 350 percent increase. It does not work. It only works if you are going to increase the livelihood of those people in those countries. It did not happen in Mexico, and it is not going to happen in these five countries in Central America.

Let me talk a little bit about CAFTA. CAFTA is the cousin of NAFTA. Eighty-five percent of the language in CAFTA is identical to the language in NAFTA; and, therefore, it is not going to do what needs to be done to help the American people and the American workers.

Let me talk about TPA, Trade Promotion Authority, which became the law of the land in August of 2002. My State of North Carolina, since that happened, 52,000 manufacturing jobs lost, and over 600,000 manufacturing jobs in the United States of America. CAFTA will not do what is being proposed by those who say we should pass CAFTA.

CAFTA is also going to be a way to allow the Chinese to back-door their goods to these five Central American countries, have them manufacture the product or put the product together, and then sell these duty-free over into America.

Mr. Speaker, I again want to say that I hope that we as a Congress will not pass CAFTA as it is drawn. If they want to go back to the table and redraw this legislation so that it is good for America and then good for these other countries, then we will look at it again. But as it is now, it is not good for the American government, it is not good for the American people, and I stand with my Republican friends, I stand with my Democratic friends, and I hope and believe that we will defeat CAFTA. It needs to be defeated.

Mr. Speaker, Title Two of H.R. 458 is most important to those of us who represent districts with a heavy military presence.

It regulates so-called ``military lenders,'' and protects servicemembers from abusive marketing and collection practices by high- cost lenders that are typically clustered outside of military installations, and who increasingly operate on the Internet. It also regulates title lenders and high-cost lenders that charge hidden fees and who frequently refinance loans to generate even more fees. Importantly, it codifies industry best practices rules for payday advance lenders.

Today's Armed Forces are the most effective in the history of the world. They have the same credit needs as the rest of us, but are uniquely vulnerable to abusive marketing and collection practices.

Many of the young men and women who have volunteered to serve in our military have limited experience in handling financial matters. They have relatively low incomes and can easily fall into debt and have to borrow to help pay expenses. Quite often, they have difficulty borrowing from traditional lenders and have to seek higher-cost credit from specialty lenders such as small loan companies, payday lenders, or finance companies. When relatively unsophisticated borrowers are unable to readily repay a loan from these lenders, they can become consumed with worries over their debt and this undercuts their abilities to fulfill their military duties.

Mr. Speaker, the New York Times pointed out abusive lending practices by companies like Pioneer Financial, a Missouri-based high-cost lender which exclusively targets services members, and according to Securities and Exchange Commission filings, employs a loophole to get around the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA). According to that paper, Pioneer charges high rates and hidden fees and has the policy of refinancing their existing loans within the first year for the express purpose of generating more fees. Unfortunately, it's not just one company like Pioneer that requires servicemembers to prey on our Armed Forces personnel. Various types of creditors, including finance companies, small loan companies, payday lenders and others, have perpetrated abusive lending practices.

That is why this legislation, and Title Two in particular, is so important. Our men and women in uniform have earned the protections that H.R. 458 will provide them.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to claim the time of the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Burton).

Mr. Speaker, I am here on the floor again tonight to talk about my opposition to CAFTA, the Central American Free Trade Agreement.

I want to start my comments by quoting Ross Perot who was a candidate for the presidency in October 1992. I quote Mr. Perot, ``You implement that NAFTA, the Mexican trade agreement, where they pay people a dollar an hour, have no health care, no retirement, no pollution control, and you are going to hear a giant sucking sound of jobs being pulled out of this country right at a time when we need the tax base to pay the debt.''

That is what Mr. Perot said in 1992.

Mr. Speaker, since NAFTA became the law of the land, let me tell you what happened in my State of North Carolina. North Carolina has lost over 200,000 manufacturing jobs. The United States has lost over 2.5 million manufacturing jobs. CAFTA will continue these trends; 85 percent of the language in CAFTA is identical to the language in NAFTA.

Mr. Speaker, let me talk about Trade Promotion Authority, which I did not support. Since Trade Proportion Authority of August of 1992, North Carolina has lost over 52,000 manufacturing jobs; the United States has lost over 600,000 million manufacturing jobs.

Mr. Speaker, CAFTA will do nothing else but to help eliminate jobs in this great Nation. I do not think we as a Nation can afford to continue to see jobs go overseas, whether they be to Central America, China or other countries.

Mr. Speaker, this past weekend, I found an advertisement in a magazine, and it starts out, Are we blind? Can't we see what is happening to us? This is an ad by the Economy in Crisis. It is creating an awareness about our true economic conditions.

Let me take just two aspects of this ad, Losing ownership and control of our country: We are losing ownership and control of our country through unsustainable balances of trade deficits. In the last 10 years, we have lost $3 trillion through these trade deficits. $1.3 trillion has been returned and used by foreign companies to buy our best companies like Chrysler, Amoco, Atlantic Richfield Oil, and 8,600 other great companies. For example, key chokepoints, industries like cement is 81 percent foreign owned. The movie industry is over 70 percent foreign owned.

Mr. Speaker, additionally in this ad it says, How well and how long can we live like this? I read just one sentence, How secure can we be if we must live on imports and sell off or dismantle our factories?

Mr. Speaker, that is what this is all about. CAFTA is not good for this country. You will see to my left and to my right, one is a newspaper article that says VF Jeanswear Closes Plant, 445 Jobs Gone By Next Summer. Mr. Speaker, those jobs went down to Honduras.

Mr. Speaker, those jobs went down to Honduras. And just 2 years ago, in North Carolina, it says Pillowtex Goes Bust, Erasing 6,450 Jobs and the subtitle says, Five North Carolina Plants Closing in Largest Single Job Loss in State's History. That was just 2 years ago, Mr. Speaker, in 2003.

I do not know how we as a Congress can pass the CAFTA legislation as it is drawn. I agree with my friends on the other side of the aisle, Democrats and also Republicans who are opposed to CAFTA as it is drawn today. We need to rewrite, redraw this treaty with the Central American countries so that it can work for them as well as it works for the United States.

Mr. Speaker, in closing, I would like to show the those in attendance on the floor a candy. It says: Candy decorated fruit snack. And this was made in China.

Mr. Speaker, again, in closing, I hope that we on the House floor will do what is right, and that is to help protect jobs in America and help protect the American people who are working so hard to pay their taxes and meet their obligations.

Mr. Speaker, I ask God to please bless our men and women in uniform and please bless America.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize the fine service of a good friend and outstanding American, Colonel John D. Gumbel, Commanding Officer of the Naval Air Depot located aboard Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, North Carolina.

A native of California, Colonel Gumbel received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from UCLA in 1977 and his Master of Science degree in Defense Systems Analysis from the Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, CA in 1987. He is also a 1998 distinguished graduate of the Industrial College of the Armed Forces with a Master of Science in National Resource Strategy and a graduate of the Program Managers Course at Defense Systems Management College, Fort Belvoir, Virginia.

Commissioned through Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps (NROTC), Colonel Gumbel then followed The Basic School in Quantico, VA with Aviation Supply Officer training in Athens, GA. In April 1978, Colonel Gumbel transferred to the Western Pacific (WESTPAC) for a year where he worked as an aviation supply officer with Marine Air Groups 12 and 15 and as the embark officer for the 31st Marine Amphibious Unit. Colonel Gumbel next transferred to Pensacola for Naval Flight Officer training and was designated a Naval Flight Officer in March 1980. Following Electronic Warfare training at Mather Air Force Base and EA-6B training at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, WA, Colonel Gumbel was designated an Electronic Countermeasures Officer (ECMO). He reported to Marine Tactical Electronic Warfare Squadron 2 (VMAQ-2) in June 1981 where he served as an ECMO and a maintenance officer. He deployed twice to WESTPAC and aboard the USS Saratoga in the Mediterranean before transferring to the Naval Postgraduate School in 1985. He served his postgraduate payback tour as the Reserve Enlisted Manpower Analyst at Headquarters Marine Corps from 1987 to 1990. Following Aviation Maintenance Officer School and refresher training in the EA-6B, Colonel Gumbel reported to VMAQ-2 in January 1991 in Shaik Isa, Bahrain, for service during the Gulf War. He served as the maintenance officer for VMAQ-2 after their return to the U.S. and as the Executive Officer of VMAQ-2 (Det. X) and later as the Executive Officer of VMAQ-1 following VMAQ-2's split into VMAQ-l, 2, and 3 in June 1992. He deployed to WESTPAC with VMAQ-1.

Colonel Gumbel transferred to Naval Air Systems Command in June 1994, where he served as the EA-6B Class Desk until July 1997. He attended the Industrial College of the Armed Forces during the 1997-98 class year and reported to the Joint Staff in June 1998. During his two-year joint tour, Colonel Gumbel worked in J-39, Information Operations, where he focused on Electronic Warfare and special access program issues. From June 2000 to June 2001, Colonel Gumbel was the Military Assistant to the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development and Acquisition. In July 2001, Colonel Gumbel reported for duty to Naval Aviation Depot Cherry Point, NC.

Naval Air Depot Cherry Point is responsible for providing maintenance, engineering and logistics support on a variety of military aircraft, engines and components. Employing over 4,000 personnel, the facility is North Carolina's largest industrial employer east of 1-95 and is a valuable asset to our nation's military. In 2004, under his command, the depot rebuilt 462 engines for our Navy and Marine Corps helicopters that are currently relied upon to transport our troops in the global war on terror.

Colonel Gumbel's personal decorations include the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, the Meritorious Service Medal, Air Medal Strike/Flight numeral I, Navy-Marine Corps Commendation Medal, Joint Service Achievement Medal, and Navy-Marine Corps Achievement Medal.

Mr. Speaker, today marks the end of Colonel Gumbel's 27 year career in the United States Marine Corps, but although he no longer wears the uniform, he will forever be a Marine. I would like to wish Colonel John Gumbel the best success as he enters a new chapter in life and to thank not only him, but also his wife Stacy and their three children Evan, Andrew, and Cameron for their loyal service to this Nation.

Mr. Speaker, on Friday, June 24, 2005, I missed several rollcall votes due to a family engagement in North Carolina. I ask that my absence be excused and the Congressional Record show that had I been present:

For rollcall No. 310--an amendment to H.R. 3010, I would have voted ``nay;'' for rollcall No.

312--an amendment to H.R. 3010, I would have voted ``yea;'' for rollcall No. 313--an amendment to H.R. 3010, I would have voted ``yea;'' for rollcall No. 317--an amendment to H.R. 3010, I would have voted ``yea;'' for rollcall No. 321--final passage of H.R. 3010, I would have voted ``nay.''

1. Sergeant First Class Mitchell A. Lane

2. Specialist Chad C. Fuller

3. Private First Class Adam L. Thomas

4. Private First Class Evan W. O'Neill

5. Private First Class Kristian E. Parker

6. Lieutenant Colonel Paul W. Kimbrough

7. Navy Petty Officer Darrell Jones

8. Civilian contractor William Carlson

9. Civilian contractor Christopher Glenn Mueller

10. Staff Sergeant Paul A. Sweeney

11. Sergeant Jay A. Blessing

12. Staff Sergeant Thomas A. Walkup Jr.

13. Major Steven Plumhoff

14. Technical Sergeant Howard A. Walters

15. Sergeant Major Phillip R. Albert

16. Technical Sergeant William J. Kerwood

17. Sergeant Theodore L. Perreault

18. Sergeant Roy A. Wood

19. Staff Sergeant Shawn M. Clemens

20. Specialist Robert J. Cook

21. Specialist Adam G. Kinser

22. Sergeant First Class Curtis Mancini

23. Staff Sergeant James D. Mowris

24. Specialist Justin A. Scott

25. Sergeant Danton K. Seitsinger

26. Sergeant Benjamin L. Gilman

27. Sergeant Nicholes Darwin Golding

28. Specialist David E. Hall

29. Staff Sergeant Anthony S. Lagman

30. Sergeant Michael J. Esposito Jr.

31. Command Sergeant Major Dennis Jallah

32. Commander Adrian Basil Szwec

33. Master Sergeant Herbert R. Claunch

34. Specialist Patrick D. Tillman

35. Specialist Phillip L. Witkowski

36. Private First Class Brandon James Wadman

37. Corporal Ronald R. Payne Jr.

38. Chief Warrant Officer Bruce E. Price

39. Petty Officer First Class Brian J. Ouellette

40. Captain Daniel W. Eggers

41. Staff Sergeant Robert J. Mogensen

42. Private First Class Joseph A. Jeffries

43. Corporal David M. Fraise

Mr. Speaker, we have coming before us pretty soon an issue called CAFTA, the Central America Free Trade Agreement. I want to start my comments, Ross Perot, when he was a candidate for the Presidency on October 19, 1992 at a Presidential debate said, ``You implement that the NAFTA, the Mexican trade agreement where they pay people a dollar an hour, have no health care, no retirement, no pollution controls, and you are going to hear a giant sucking sound of jobs being pulled out of this country right at a time when we need the tax base to pay the debt.''

Mr. Speaker, Mr. Perot was exactly right. We know Ross Perot as a successful businessman and a man who loves and cares about America.

Let me tell Members what happened since December 1993 when NAFTA became the law of the land. Before NAFTA, we ran a trade surplus with Mexico. Now the U.S. runs a $45 billion annual trade deficit with Mexico; from a trade surplus to a trade deficit.

In addition, my home State of North Carolina since NAFTA became the law of the land has lost over 200,000 manufacturing jobs. The United States has lost over 2.5 million manufacturing jobs.

Let me give some facts about illegal aliens coming from Mexico across the

border. Prior to NAFTA, the average was 2 million. Since NAFTA, it is better than 7.5 million. CAFTA will continue these trends. Eighty-five percent of the language in CAFTA is identical to the language in NAFTA.

Let me give another example of what has happened to American jobs. In 2002, the Congress, I did not support this legislation, decided to give the President trade promotion authority, known as TPA. Since that time, America's annual trade deficit grew $195 billion to $617 billion. That is how much the trade deficit grew.

Let me give an example of TPA and how it relates to North Carolina. Since TPA passed, North Carolina has lost over 52,000 manufacturing jobs. The United States has lost over 600,000 manufacturing jobs.

Mr. Speaker, on my left I have got two news articles, one from a couple of years ago in the Raleigh paper known as the News & Observer; it says, Pillowtex Goes Bust, erasing 6,450 jobs. These were five plants in North Carolina that lost that many jobs, 6,450. Then I have got another article from a business in my county I share with the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Butterfield), the Wilson Daily Times, says VF Jeanswear Closes Plants, Last 445 Jobs Gone By Next Summer. The jobs are going down to Honduras.

Mr. Speaker, a couple of more points. CAFTA means more U.S. job losses. We know what NAFTA has done. We know what Trade Promotion Authority, TPA, has done. CAFTA provides every incentive to outsource jobs to Central America. Average wages in Nicaragua are 95 cents an hour; Guatemala, $1 an hour; El Salvador, $1.25 an hour. Plus, these countries have few labor and environmental standards and CAFTA does little to improve them.

CAFTA will allow the Chinese to backdoor fabrics into Central America where it can be assembled and shipped into United States duty-free. The last thing we need is to help China. We have already outsourced 1.5 million jobs to China in the last 15 years.

Mr. Speaker, as I begin to close, I want to show my fellow colleagues that might be watching in their offices, recently this was dropped by my office, and it says candy decorated fruit snacks, real fruit. Then you turn it over and it says, ``made in China.'' If the candy we are eating now in America, many of it is made in China, then I wonder if one day at the rate we are going of losing these manufacturing jobs, that we might be buying our tanks for our military from China.

I hope, Mr. Speaker, that does not happen. I hope the House will defeat CAFTA. It is not good for America, it is not good for the American worker, and I do not even believe it is good for the people who live in Central America.

Mr. Speaker, with that I will close by asking God to please bless our men and women in uniform and their families and ask God to please continue to bless America.

Madam Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman from Tennessee and the gentleman from California. His remarks were absolutely excellent and to the point, a very fine public servant.

I am only going to take a few minutes. I certainly want to thank the chairman and the ranking member of the committee in getting this legislation to the floor.

Madam Speaker, as fate would have it, Floyd Lupton and my father were a team. I do not know anyone that knew anything about the congressional office that would not say the same thing because my daddy, as many of my colleagues remember, who served with him on the floor of the House, at one point in his career became chairman of the Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee, and it took a great deal of his time. Floyd always was there to take care of the needs of the people of the 1st Congressional District and to make sure that the office was running as smooth as a congressional office can.

I think about the personal relationship that my family had with Floyd Lupton. We were like family, quite frankly.

Floyd would drive my daddy home most of the weekends from Washington, D.C., to eastern North Carolina, and I would know that my father was coming home. My mother would call and say, ``Walter, your dad is going to be here pretty soon with Floyd; don't you want to come up here and have a bit of time with him and socialize?'' I did that so many times.

Those days of being there with my father and Floyd, when they were driving back from Washington, in a house in a little town of Farmville, 5,000 people, were very special times for me and my family because we were a family.

When Floyd came to Washington, Madam Speaker, he spent I do not know how many hours after the Congress had finished of staying out at 7:30, 8:30, 9:00 at night, calling constituents back home to say hello, trying to help someone who had a problem that they finally had answers and/or they could at least listen to that constituent to see if they could find answers.

Floyd, as has been said by the gentleman from California (Mr. Waxman) and the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Duncan) never, not one time, did he seek anything for himself. His only concern were the people of the 1st District of North Carolina, and I think about how humble a man Floyd Lupton was, a man that always had time. He never would look past anybody when he was talking to them. He would look them straight in the eye. He would always take time when maybe he did not have the time, but no one ever realized that he had something else to do as he always had a way about himself so that people knew that he cared.

Sadly, at his funeral, which I know that he is in heaven, there is no question in my mind about that, with his lovely wife Doris, but they asked me to speak at his funeral. It was an extremely emotional time for me, and I remember when one thing I did say that if anybody wanted to know the definition of public service, all they would have to know is Floyd Lupton because he exemplified exactly what a public servant is.

I have just a couple of more comments and then I will yield back my time. Too many times when buildings, and whether it be a post office or a Federal building or State building, we always seem to think about someone who was elected to public life and, therefore, it is easier for that person who was elected to public life to be remembered, but in this case, I want to say again to the ranking member and to the Chamber that I am grateful that today we will hopefully pass legislation that will remember a public servant that never held public office. He could have probably if he had been a younger man, but he gave 26 years, as has been stated, to serving my father and to serving the people of the 1st District at the same time.

This is so fitting, and I know I speak on behalf of thousands of people in eastern North Carolina who knew Floyd Lupton when I say thank you to the committee of jurisdiction for getting this legislation to the floor. I know also I speak for his family as well. They will be thrilled and excited that we got this legislation to the floor of the House, and hopefully it will pass this evening.

Secondly, I want to say that this Congress, I have the greatest respect for this institution and the fact today that we will hopefully pass H.R. 2326 on behalf of a man who never asked anything but what can I do to help you. That is the legacy of Floyd Lupton.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Texas and the gentleman from Vermont (Mr. Sanders) for bringing this joint resolution to the floor.

Mr. Speaker, I come to the floor today because I believe that WTO membership has been a disaster for the U.S. worker. Since WTO, 1995, America's annual trade deficit grew from $96 billion to $617 billion. My home State of North Carolina has lost over 251,000 manufacturing jobs. The United States has lost over 2.9 million manufacturing jobs.

Mr. Speaker, it was not too long ago that, I did not vote for it, but we gave trade promotion authority to the President of the United States. I was opposed to it when Mr. Clinton asked for it. I was opposed to it when Mr. Bush asked for it. And let me tell the Members what has happened since trade promotion authority, August of 2002.

North Carolina has lost over 52,000 manufacturing jobs, and the United States has lost over 600,000 manufacturing jobs.

Let me take just a moment to talk about how WTO membership strips American sovereignty. If the United States does not change its laws to suit WTO, then America's businesses and consumers face trade sanctions. Trade disputes are decided by international panels that are hand-picked by the WTO. The identities of panel members are kept secret, and deliberations are kept confidential. These WTO panels have ruled in favor of the United States less than one-third of the time. They have ruled in favor of the United States less than one-third of the time.

WTO panel rulings go far beyond trade. In fact, the WTO panel recently found a Utah law prohibiting Internet gambling to be illegal. What will the WTO do next?

Let me quote from Robert Stumberg, a trade law expert at Georgetown University, from Business Week, March 7, 2005. I quote: ``If Bush successfully engineers the introduction of private Social Security accounts, WTO rules would require the feds to let foreign money managers and insurers bid to manage them.''

How far do we have to go before we give up the sovereignty of this Nation? I do not know about you, Mr. Speaker, but I think letting the Chinese manage American Social Security accounts is a bad idea. Unfortunately, under WTO, there is little we can do to prevent it. We have already outsourced 1.5 million jobs since 1989 to the Chinese. We do not need to give control over to the Chinese of Social Security accounts in America.

Mr. Speaker, before I close, I want to make a real quick point. On my right, this chart shows on July 31, 2003, in North Carolina we lost 6,450 jobs. It says, ``Five North Carolina plants close in the largest single job loss in the State's history.'' Just 3 weeks ago, Mr. Speaker, a plant in my district announced that 445 jobs would be going overseas.

Mr. Speaker, I close by asking my colleagues that care about the American workers and care about the sovereignty of America to please join us in this effort.