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Leonard Boswell | ||||
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| Today the House passed a bill to allow permanent normal trade
relations with China by a 237 - 197 vote. Rep. Leonard Boswell,
citing the importance of increased agricultural trade for the state of
Iowa, voted in favor of this proposal. "Trade is incredibly important to the future of Iowa's agriculture economy," said Boswell. "As the nation's number two exporter of agricultural goods, behind only California, the Chinese market is of critical importance to Iowa's economy." In order to ensure China's accession into the World Trade Organization (WTO) Congress must approve permanent normal trade relations with the country. Allowing for permanent normal trade with China will give America increased access to a country of 1.3 billion people with a rapidly growing middle class. The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) estimates China will account for over 35% of future export growth in our agricultural economy. "This agreement is critical to American agriculture. If we do not trade our agricultural goods with China, other countries will, and our farmers will be left on the outside looking in at one of the biggest markets in the world. We must seize this opportunity and expand access to China's market for our farmers," said Boswell. Responding to concerns regarding China's poor record on human rights issues, Boswell stated, "The legislation I supported today contained critical provisions relating to human rights. The bill calls for the creation of a commission, comprised of both Congressional and Administrative appointees, which will continually monitor the human rights conditions in China. This type of commission was successfully utilized in monitoring communist Republics in Eastern Europe prior to the end of the cold war." "I believe through increased contact we can improve China's practices in all of these areas. We need to lift up their standards, not lower ours. Increased trade will benefit thousands of family farmers across Iowa and thus the whole state," said Boswell. | ||||
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