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Congressman Dennis J. Kucinich
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Congressman Dennis J. Kucinich
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Congressman Kucinich continued to fight to protect workers’ rights and local democracy from attack by global corporate trade.
Steel Crisis - Efforts in Congress
Congressman Kucinich has been one of the most outspoken and active members of Congress in response to the crisis. A leader of the Congressional Steel Caucus, Kucinich has again been active in this Congress pushing a steel quota bill. H.R. 808, the Steel Revitalization Act, would limit foreign steel imports to levels existing before the recent surge. It would also increase loan guarantee funding for steel companies, and set up a fund to help pay the retirement costs of steel worker retirees. Congressman Kucinich has fought for this bill's passage, helping to recruit more than 220 co-sponsors. This effort mirrors his work on the steel quota bill introduced in the 106th Congress, the Visclosky-Quinn-Kucinich-Ney bill. During the floor debate on that bill, Congressman Kucinich pointed out to members of Congress the absurd priorities of U.S. trade policy. Referring to the U.S.'s vigorous use of the World Trade Organization to open Europe to bananas grown in Central America by Chiquita brands, a U.S.-based multinational corporation, Kucinich said, "Bananas did not build America. Steel did... The administration cares more about bananas than about steel. Such a trade policy is, in a word, bananas." The quota bill passed the House by an overwhelming margin, 289-141, on March 17, 1999.
Congressman Kucinich has also pursued other legislative initiatives to secure a healthy steel industry for the long-term. Kucinich recently introduced the Steel and National Security Act, which would reauthorize a law, the Defense Production Act, that authorizes various Presidential actions to save industries vital to our national security. His reauthorization bill includes specific directives that the President consider steel such an industry and step in to help domestic steel. Kucinich has also introduced a bill along with Rep. Steven LaTourette, H.R. 1564, that would provide money for states to undertake infrastructure projects, such as the building of schools and roads. States would be required to use only American steel.
In addition to votes and floor speeches, Congressman Kucinich was the first member of Congress to confront the Administration with the effects on the steel industry by the Asian financial crisis. In a White House meeting in mid-December 1997, he met with National Economic Advisor Gene Sperling and discussed the necessity of renewing voluntary restraint agreements and the use of U.S. anti-dumping laws to protect the American steel industry.
Congressman Kucinich has also pressured the new administration to act on the steel crisis. The efforts of Kucinich and other members of Congress helped spur President Bush to initiate a Section 201 trade investigation of steel imports. Since that announcement, Kucinich has closely monitored the scope and speed of the investigation, co-signing a letter to the President urging the inclusion of all steel-related products in the investigation. In September, Kucinich plans to testify before the U.S. International Trade Commission in support of strong remedies for the U.S. steel industry.
Congressman Kucinich has also pressured the administration to act on the
steel crisis. The efforts of Rep. Kucinich and other members of Congress helped
spur President Bush to initiate a Section 201 trade investigation of steel
imports. Since that announcement and a subsequent unanimous finding by the US
International Trade Commission (ITC) that the domestic steel industry had been
seriously injured by illegal foreign imports, Rep. Kucinich applauded the March
2002 imposition of the section 201 steel tariff safeguard to help the domestic
steel industry recover and restructure. Prior to the imposition of the tariffs,
Rep. Kucinich testified before the ITC in support of the tariffs and co-signed a
letter to the President urging the inclusion of all steel-related products in
the safeguard.
In the 108th Congress, Rep. Kucinich has been working
with his colleagues to pressure the administration to maintain the Section 201
relief for its full three-year term, as originally intended. With other
Congressional supporters of the domestic steel industry, Rep. Kucinich sent a
letter to the President in support of the tariffs and testified a second time
before the ITC in support of sustaining the tariffs. The midterm report issued
by the ITC reflects the fact that the steel safeguard is serving a vital role in
helping the industry build a strong and vibrant domestic steel industry. The
industry has invested more than $3.6 billion in consolidation efforts in
reliance on the program, and the industry is beginning to see signs of a modest
price recovery, in spite of hundreds of exclusions granted by the
administration.
Rep. Kucinich strongly criticized the World Trade
Organization’s (WTO) ruling against the continuation of the 201 tariffs,
co-sponsoring a congressional resolution denouncing the WTO’s ruling against
American steel. Rep. Kucinich has argued that if the United States is to be free
to negotiate trade agreements and take actions to protect American jobs, the
environment, and the rights of workers domestically and abroad, the United
States must withdraw from the WTO.
Steel Crisis - Efforts in Cleveland
Congressman Kucinich has fought hard to help Cleveland-area workers affected by the steel crisis. During the recent negotiations between LTV and the United Steelworkers of America, Kucinich worked to make sure that LTV jobs and the pensions of current and former LTV retirees remained intact. He met numerous times with LTV Chairman William H. Bricker and urged him to negotiate in good faith with the Steelworkers and LTV's creditors towards an agreement that preserved the jobs and benefits of employees. When LTV filed motions in bankruptcy court to cancel existing labor and retiree agreements, Kucinich spoke out against the use of threats in the negotiating process by filing a motion on behalf of LTV workers objecting to LTV's actions. The efforts of Kucinich and others paid off: LTV and the United Steelworkers of America reached an agreement recently that preserves the retirement benefits of current employees. This agreement has been approved by a bankruptcy judge.
Worker Rights and Trade
Congressman Kucinich was an active opponent of making permanent most-favored-nation trading status with China, continuing his effort to build support for a new trade policy that conditions trade relations with the U.S. on worker rights. Kucinich was most concerned that granting China permanent MFN would encourage U.S. businesses to close facilities in the U.S. or forgo investment in the U.S. in favor of opening new factories in China. Products made in those factories would be sold in the U.S. as well as other places in the world.
As Congressman Kucinich said in a letter released to every member of Congress:
"It is a myth that the U.S. exports high technology to China, while the U.S. only imports labor-intensive, low technology goods. In fact, we import both, and we have a trade deficit with China in both.
"Indeed, trade in the highest technology is unbalanced in China's favor. According to the latest figures from the Department of Commerce, the U.S. now imports from China 64 percent more than it exports to China in Advanced Technology Products. These products include: microprocessors, printed circuits, integrated circuits, telephone switching equipment, and turbojet engine parts.
"Corporate leaders are fond of calling high-technology the "industry of tomorrow." Some tomorrow is in store for American workers! Permanent MFN will give China a permanent advantage in attracting high technology manufacturers, and U.S. firms a permanent incentive to build new plants in China, not the U.S."
Congressman Kucinich organized several briefings on the effects permanent MFN would have on manufacturing, agriculture and high technology. He did this in coordination with Rep. Charlie Norwood, a Republican from Georgia.
In the previous year, Kucinich organized 113 Democrats to sign a letter calling upon the Administration to renegotiate existing WTO agreements to remove prohibitions on linking trade and worker rights, before any new WTO agreement is negotiated. The letter states that the U.S. should be free:
[For a copy of the letter, click here]
International Monetary Fund Reform
Congressman Kucinich has been instrumental in drawing Congressional attention to the effects of the IMF's harsh economic policies on developing countries. For the past two years, Kucinich has insisted that future funds for the IMF must be conditioned on an end to the IMF's imposition of those policies, which cause unemployment, environmental despoilation, and a deterioration of health and education.
In the 107th Congress, Kucinich has tried to protect gains made in previous Congresses. He testified to the Foreign Operations Subcommittee that an important reform banning user fees for certain essential services was being undermined by the Department of Treasury. [For a copy of the testimony, click here].
In the 106th Congress (1999-2000), the House made two important advances. Rep. Kucinich offered an amendment to direct the Department of Treasury to create an inventory of all the instances in which the IMF requires borrowing countries to privatize industry and government services, deregulate environmental and financial laws, roll back labor law reforms, and raise interest rates. The Chairman of the subcommittee agreed to include acceptable language in the bill to obtain such a study. In exchange, the amendment was withdrawn. The House also passed an amendment offered in the Foreign Operations subcommittee by Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. to prohibit the IMF from requiring developing countries to charge fees for health services and education. Those fees have been shown to discourage poor people from receiving health care and education for their children. In addition, Rep. Kucinich was the only member of Congress invited to speak to the tens of thousands of people who demonstrated against the IMF and World Bank in Washington, DC on April 16, 2000.
In the 105th Congress, Congressman Kucinich was one of the leading advocates of IMF reform. Congressman Kucinich introduced a bill with Congressman Jim Saxton, a senior Republican from New Jersey, to press for reform of the IMF and deliver meaningful debt cancellation to the world's poorest countries (HR 2939). The bill was the inspiration for a successful amendment offered in the Banking Committee that delinked debt relief from obligating poor countries to follow IMF economic policies. That amendment passed on November 3, 1999. In the 105th Congress, Congressman Kucinich was a leader in the effort to prevent IMF expansion, and his activities helped to delay a $18 billion expansion by nearly one year. Notably, Kucinich successfully lobbied other Members of Congress when a procedural motion was raised to require that Congress give the IMF expansion funds. The motion was defeated on April 23, 1998.
Congressman Kucinich was also successful in eliminating a "plant closing provision" of the IMF funding bill. The bill contained investment deregulation conditions that would have automatically applied if funds were appropriated for the IMF. Those conditions would have had the effect of encouraging plant closings in the U.S., since the IMF would have been guaranteeing conditions that multinational corporations seek when they transfer capital from the U.S. to developing nations. Those conditions were also the subject of negotiation in the Multilateral Agreement on Investment (MAI). Congressman Kucinich lobbied other members of Congress in the leadership to eliminate those conditions.
What is Fast Track (a.k.a. Trade Promotion Authority)?
Fast Track is a procedural straightjacket designed to speed Congressional votes on international trade agreements. Congressman Kucinich has opposed Fast Track legislation since coming to Washington.
He was one of the leaders of the effort that defeated Fast Track in 1997 and 1998. Fast Track would have enabled the U.S.Trade Representative to negotiate an expansion of NAFTA to the rest of South America and other countries.
There is good reason to oppose Fast Track. Namely, it ushered in NAFTA. The North American Free Trade Agreement has caused numerous problems since it was enacted in 1993. The U.S. trade deficit with Mexico and Canada has ballooned. As a result of increased imports from our NAFTA partners, American workers have lost thousands of good paying jobs. At the same time, some companies have used the threat of moving jobs to Mexico to place downward pressure on wages and benefits for American workers. Meanwhile, the labor side agreement to NAFTA has proven to be totally ineffective. The real value of wages for Mexican workers has declined since NAFTA was enacted, and not a single company has been cited for violations of worker rights or labor standards.
In addition, serious concerns have been raised about environmental problems and food and truck safety under NAFTA. The degradation of the environment has escalated along our border with Mexico, and the environmental side agreement has proved to be a complete failure. At the same time, it is abundantly clear that the U.S. government is not adequately inspecting trucks and agricultural products that enter this country, thereby threatening the health and safety of the general public. Furthermore, the sovereignty of local, state and federal authorities to protect their constituents from environmental and other dangers is severely undermined by the investor rights section (Chapter 11) of NAFTA.
If granted Fast Track authority, the new administration hopes to expand NAFTA to encompass all countries in the Americas. This Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) would export the destructive effects of NAFTA throughout our hemisphere.
For all of these reasons, Rep. Kucinich is convinced that Congress should continue to reject any fast track legislation. We need to make sure that the serious problems which have arisen under NAFTA are addressed in a meaningful way before we rush ahead with expanding this trade agreement to the rest of South America.
The World Trade Organization (WTO) was established in 1995. It is the result of Uruguay Round of General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) negotiations. The WTO consists of 16 agreements on subjects ranging from domestic patent law to food safety regulations - and has 135 member countries. The WTO transformed the GATT, a consensus-based trade pact that focused primarily on tariff and quota cuts, into a new global commerce agency that allows member countries to challenge any of each other's laws as "illegal barriers to trade." The WTO can enforce its rulings and force countries to get rid of disputed laws by approving retaliatory economic sanctions against the losing country. In its five-year existence, WTO dispute panels have almost exclusively ruled against the challenged laws, which are often health and safety related.
The WTO Has No Minimum Human or Worker Rights Criteria for Membership:
Under WTO rules, as long as it met WTO commercial obligations, Nazi Germany would not be disqualified from WTO membership based on its conduct. WTO rules do not require that member countries (or countries wishing to gain WTO membership) respect or enforce internationally agreed core human and labor rights standards. WTO policy explicitly enables countries to ignore global norms relating to collective bargaining, child labor, and forced labor as a strategy to reduce production costs and gain a competitive advantage vis-a-vis manufacturers in other countries. The WTO thus has put in motion a global trading regime whose rules reward the players who are most exploitative of labor, promoting a race-to-the-bottom that undercuts advancement of international labor rights and the improvement of standards of living worldwide.
GATT/WTO Rules Threaten Efforts to Protect Labor Rights:
Many people want to stop child labor, but the WTO blocks the most obvious ways of doing that. For instance, the WTO prohibits our use of a ban on the import of products made with child labor. GATT rules prohibit distinguishing among products based on how they are made. This means that a WTO Member country cannot ban goods produced in forced labor camps, goods made by children under abusive conditions or goods produced in violation of other internationally recognized labor or human rights. This is confirmed by a U.S. Congressional Research Service report, which warned that a U.S. proposal to ban the products of child labor would subject the U.S. to a GATT challenge.
The WTO agreement on government procurement bans the consideration of non-commercial factors (such as human and labor rights) in government purchasing decisions. One mechanism with which to improve both government and corporate accountability is to reserve lucrative public contracts for socially responsible businesses. But the WTO denies citizens this type of control over the use of their own tax dollars. Under WTO government procurement rules, countries can only take into consideration commercial factors when awarding contracts. These rules have been used by the EU and Japan to challenge a Massachusetts state selective purchasing law against corporations in business with Burma's human-rights-violating regime.
WTO rules on product standards cast worker safety safeguards as illegal trade barriers: Under new WTO rules, even workplace safety laws can be challenged as illegal trade restrictions. Canada is pressing such a challenge against France's ban on asbestos.
The WTO undermines the sovereignty of countries.
The WTO has taken away the freedom of citizens to pass laws freely. The proof is in the numbers: The total number of completed WTO cases: 65. The number of instances countries have changed their laws or policies in response to WTO challenge: 59.
The U.S. uses the WTO to protect compact disk makers and bananas, not workers.
The WTO is not used by the U.S. to protect worker rights. Instead, the U.S. is most likely to use the WTO to protect patents and copyrights. The number of WTO challenges initiated by the US: 30. The chances that a US challenge targeted patent or copyright laws: 1 in 3. Another U.S. priority is bananas. The U.S. has vigorously used the WTO to open Europe to bananas grown in Central America by Chiquita brands, a U.S.-based multinational corporation. Bananas did not build America. Steel and auto did. But this shows that the administration cares more about bananas than about steel or automobiles. Such a trade policy is, in a word, bananas.
The WTO has been used to rollback advances in public health programs.
Developing countries face a health and economic crisis due to HIV/AIDS. At the same time, they cannot afford the market price for antiretroviral drug treatment.
Brazil's answer has been to manufacture generic antiretroviral drugs for the treatment of HIV/AIDS and provide them free of cost to all Brazilians who need them. Brazil's program has been successful; it has reduced the AIDS death rate by half. The World Bank and the United Nations cite Brazil's HIV/AIDS program as one of the best in the world. Nevertheless, the U.S. challenged Brazil for violating WTO intellectual property laws, and the WTO agreed to establish a panel to rule on the case. If the U.S. had won this case, the WTO would have authorized the U.S. to impose punitive economic sanctions on Brazil. Fortunately, the U.S. withdrew its case against Brazil on June 25, 2001, in response to public pressure.
Other trade issues: Permanent MFN status for China
Contrary to what certain special interests said to Capitol Hill, it was neither necessary nor desirable to grant China permanent Most Favored Nation (MFN) trading status. Instead, Congress could and should continue to review China's trading status on an annual basis.
Permanent MFN was not necessary -- The WTO does not require that the U.S. grant China permanent MFN. In fact, the international trade agreement only requires that China receive MFN, but it does not specify that the award must be on a permanent basis. We could continue to review China's trading status on an annual basis and satisfy the WTO. So long as the U.S. does not allow the status to lapse, we would be in compliance with international trade obligations. There is no legal reason requiring Congress to give China permanent MFN status. This isn't just my legal opinion - it’s also that of the Secretary of Commerce during the last administration, William Daley. At a news conference on December 16, 1999, Secretary Daley admitted to a reporter for a Washington trade journal that permanent MFN is not legally necessary. However, the Administration "emphatically" wanted permanent status.
Permanent MFN is not desirable -- Permanent MFN for China has cost the U.S. the best leverage we have to influence China to enact worker rights, human rights and religious rights and protections. At the current time, the U.S. buys about 40 percent of China's exports, making it a consumer with a lot of clout. So long as the U.S. annually continued to review China's trade status, we would potentially have had the ability to use access to the U.S. market as leverage for gains in worker and human rights. But once China was given permanent MFN, we lost that leverage, and China will now be free to attract multinational capital on the promise of super low wages, medieval workplace conditions and prison labor. Recent history shows that the current Chinese regime is completely incapable of reform on its own.
Consider the case of the 1992 Memorandum of Understanding between the United States and China on prison labor, when China agreed to take measures to halt the export of products made with forced labor. According to a recent U.S. State Department report, "In all cases [of forced labor identified by U.S. Customs], the [Chinese] Ministry of Justice refused the request, ignored it, or simply denied the allegations without further elaboration." If Congress gives up its annual review of China's trade status, Congress will be unable to do anything about worker rights there.
Furthermore, giving China permanent MFN will be harmful to the U.S. economy, since the record trade deficit with China (and attendant problems such as loss of U.S. jobs, and lower average wages in the U.S.) will worsen. For 2000, the trade deficit was nearly $84 billion. Now that China has been awarded permanent MFN and is close to WTO membership, the trade deficit will worsen. In a September 30, 1999 report, the U.S. International Trade Commission concluded that China's accession to the WTO would cause "an increase in the U.S. trade deficit with China".
Conclusion -- There was no legal requirement to award China permanent MFN. Permanent MFN will be a drag on the U.S. economy and has cost us the best leverage we have to promote justice in China and throughout the world.
How does all of this relate to Steel?
The steel crisis of the past few years is a direct result of the Asian Financial Crisis and collapse of the Russian economy, which occurred during 1997 and 1998. With Indonesia, Thailand, Korea, the Philippines, and Russia all afflicted, global demand for steel plummeted. Steel that had once gone into real estate development in Asia now came flooding into the American market. Since the steel was made in countries whose currencies had fallen in value, it was incredibly cheap. As a result, steel made in America, though made more efficiently and by high-skilled workers, could not compete. Ten thousand steelworkers were laid off, and six steel companies were driven into bankruptcy. After a brief respite, the cycle has resumed, and the American steel industry is again being battered by a flood of cheap imports.
The Asian Financial Crisis, the collapse of the Russian economy, and the resulting flood of steel imports can all be attributed to the forces of free trade and globalization. The sequence plays out as follows:
1) The International Monetary Fund, which controls international economic policy, imposes so-called “structural adjustment” policies on developing nations - including the Asian countries and Russia - as a condition of receiving loans. Essentially, these harsh policies force developing countries to very quickly transform their economies into export-driven ones. Only countries that develop such economies are granted favorable terms on their debt by the IMF.
2) Forced into the creation of export-led economies, developing nations become dependent on the United States both for investment capital and as a market-of- last-resort in which to sell goods. If investors, for whatever reason, begin to flee these countries, a financial crisis ensues. Falling demand for materials like steel force countries to dump low-cost goods into the United States.
3) The WTO regulations described above make it difficult for the United States to protect its industries through tariffs or quotas on imports, despite the existence of U.S. trade laws that provide for such action. The presumption against protective measures is often reinforced by U.S. trade representatives, who are steeped in the same free trade, pro-globalization ideology as WTO and IMF officials.
4) The result? A race to the bottom that benefits no one. One country’s hard times (say, Korea) forces it to dump cheap goods in another country (the U.S.) that then ends up sharing the misery. Workers everywhere suffer - Americans lose their jobs, and Koreans are forced to accept poor working conditions to keep prices cheap.
American workers.
Helpful Resources
Public
Citizen’s Global Trade Watch
Friends
of the Earth
Steelworkers
Autoworkers
Economic
Policy Institute
Multinational
Monitor Magazine
Letters of the 107th Congress, 1st Session
October 3, 2001 - Congressman Kucinich signed on to a letter to the Federal Reserve System, the Security and Exchange Commission and the Department of Commerce in support of Key Bank and National City Bank’s application to the Emergency Steel Loan Guarantee Program for a proposed loan to the LTV Corp.
August 2, 2001 - Congressman Kucinich signed on to a letter to Chairman Stephen Koplan of the U.S. International Trade Commission requesting that he proceed in its Section 201 investigation on steel without extending the Commission’s present schedule.
July 6, 2001 - Congressman Kucinich signed on to a letter to Secretary of Treasury Paul O’Neill recommending reforms at the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and other Multilateral Development Banks to make them more open and accountable.
June 13, 2001 - Congressman Kucinich signed on to a letter to the entire house of representatives urging support to include labor and environment in the core text of future trade agreements
June 7, 2001 - Congressman Kucinich signed on to a letter to President George W. Bush requesting the US Trade Representative to request the initiation by the International Trade Commission of an investigation into steel imports and to request emergency relief for the ailing steel industry.
May 7, 2001. Congressman Kucinich signed a letter to President George W. Bush regarding the International Trade Commission recommendation to extend the wheat gluten safeguard measure for two years.
May 4, 2001 - Congressman Kucinich signed on to a letter to US Trade Representative Robert Zoellick to remove Guatemala from the list of countries that receive duty-free trade benefits under the Generalized System of Preferences.
March 19, 2001 - Congressman Kucinich signed on to a letter to President George W. Bush requesting assistance in preventing the demise of the U.S. steel industry.
March 5, 2001 - Congressman Kucinich signed on to a letter to President George W. Bush asking for the release of the text of The Free Trade Agreement of the Americas.
February 14, 2001 - Congressman Kucinich signed on to a letter to President George W. Bush as members of the Steel Caucus requesting assistance in addressing the ongoing domestic steel crisis.
February 5, 2001 - Congressman Kucinich signed on to a letter to Chairman James Harmon of the Export-Import Bank of the United States expressing strong disappointment and dismay at the recent decision to provide an $18 million loan guarantee to Benxi Iron & Steel Co., Ltd, a Chinese steel mill and exporter.
January 9, 2001 - Congressman Kucinich signed on to a letter to Chairman and CEO of Chase Manhattan Corp. William Harrison to express appreciation for the additional credit to LTV by Chase Manhattan Bank and to ask to honor LTV’s line of credit.
January 8, 2001 - Congressman Kucinich signed on to a letter to Secretary Norman Mineta and Daniel Rooney of the U.S. Department of Commerce Steel Loan Guarantee Board expressing concerns regarding the administration of the Emergency Steel Loan Guarantee Act of 1999.
January 5, 2001 - Congressman Kucinich sent a letter to President William Jefferson Clinton in support of the World Trade Organization.
October 27, 2000 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to the Honorable Charlene Barshefsky, U.S. Trade Representative, to urge that the Administration support the President’s use of his full authority under the Pelly Amendment to end Japan’s efforts to undermine international controls on whaling.
October 25, 2000 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to President Clinton to urge taking a bold and comprehensive approach to address the continued crisis in the domestic steel industry via immediately initiating a comprehensive case under Section 201 of trade laws and impose meaningful restraints on steel imports from offending non- WTO countries.
October 17, 2000 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to Congressman Charles Rangel, Ranking Member on the Committee of Ways and Means, to urge the Conferees on HR 4868, the Miscellaneous Trade and Technical Corrections Act, to conclude rapidly so that this legislation can be voted on by the 106th Congress and signed into law by President Clinton.
October 17, 2000 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to Congressman Bill Archer, Chairman of the Committee on Ways and Means, to urge the Conferees on HR 4868, the Miscellaneous Trade and Technical Corrections Act, to conclude rapidly so that this legislation can be voted on by the 106th Congress and signed into law by President Clinton.
October 11, 2000 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to the Honorable David Obey, Ranking Member of Committee on Appropriations, urging strong opposition to require rapid trade liberalization as a prerequisite for bilateral or multilateral debt relief in the current fiscal year.
October 11, 2000 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to the Honorable Nancy Pelosi, Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Foreign Operations and Export Financing Appropriations, urging strong opposition to require rapid trade liberalization as a prerequisite for bilateral or multilateral debt relief in the current fiscal year.
October 6, 2000 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to President Clinton to urging that the US show the flexibility and imagination necessary to enable the logjam in the US/EU negotiations to be broken, and a solution to be found that safeguards US national interests as well as the fundamental economic and social needs of the Caribbean to maintain its export trade.
September 13, 2000 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to fellow Colleagues urging them to read specific articles reinforcing why PNTR for China was a wrongly granted status without conditions as voted by the House, in an effort to continued dedication to free trade.
September 7, 2000 - Congressman Kucinich signed a letter to Donna Koehnke, Secretary for the International Trade Commission, stating intention to testify at the International Trade Commission’s Sunset Review Hearing on Corrosion-Resistant Steel Products on September 13, 2000.
August 22, 2000 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to the Honorable Marcy Kaptur, Ranking Member of the Agriculture Subcommittee and Appropriations Committee, urging the inclusion of language requiring the President to report to Congress the effectiveness of lifting any unilateral food and medical sanctions if such legislation is passed to terminate unilateral food and medical sanctions against any country.
August 22, 2000 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to the Honorable David Obey, Ranking Member of the Appropriations Committee, urging the inclusion of language requiring the President to report to Congress the effectiveness of lifting any unilateral food and medical sanctions if such legislation is passed to terminate unilateral food and medical sanctions against any country.
August 22, 2000 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to the Honorable C.W. Young, Chairman of the Appropriations Committee, urging the inclusion of language requiring the President to report to Congress the effectiveness of lifting any unilateral food and medical sanctions if such legislation is passed to terminate unilateral food and medical sanctions against any country.
August 22, 2000 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to the Honorable Joe Skeen, Chairman of the Agriculture Subcommittee, urging the inclusion of language requiring the President to report to Congress the effectiveness of lifting any unilateral food and medical sanctions if such legislation is passed to terminate unilateral food and medical sanctions against any country.
July 26, 2000 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to the Honorable Stuart Eizenstat, Deputy Secretary of the Treasury, urging leadership in terminating any benefit for export of tobacco products.
July 18, 2000 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to His Excellency Shunji Yanai of the Embassy of Japan to urge the government of Japan to agree to an open and transparent process for conducting the settlement of the Hot-Rolled Steel dispute between the US and Japan.
June 2, 2000 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to President Clinton requesting him to encourage the IMF and World Bank to stop requiring Mozambique to privatize its cashew nut processing industry and the sugar industry.
April 19, 2000 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to Deputy Secretary of the Treasury supporting arms control and opposing the use of a feature of the US tax code (Foreign Sales Corporation) to subsidize military sales.
April 6, 2000 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to the Worker Rights Consortium indicating his support for the Worker Rights Consortium.
March 31, 2000 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to President Clinton requesting that he use his authority to block any IPO brought to the US capital markets by CNPC, and/or PetroChina, until an acceptable use of the proceeds therefrom has been assured.
March 23, 2000 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to the Attorney General requesting that she withdraw from a Government’s appeal of the District Court ruling requiring that environmental representatives participate on the forest sector industry advisory committees.
March 22, 2000 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations of the Commerce Committee requesting conduct hearings on the securities regulations issues arising out of the initial public offering (IPO) of the common stock of PetroChina Company Ltd.
March 22, 2000 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to the Chairman of the US International Trade Commission requesting support for the continuation of anti-dumping duty orders on steel bearings from countries that are now subject to review by the International Trade Commission under the “sunset” review process.
March 6, 2000 - Congressman Kucinich sent a letter to Chairman Crane of the Ways and Means Subcommittee on Trade asking that the subcommittee include the provisions of H.R. 1622, the Dog and Cat Protection Act, in any trade correction legislation considered this session. H.R. 1622 would make it a federal offense to import dog and cat fur. March 2000 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to President Clinton commending his call at the World Trade Organization ministerial for trade discussions to include broader representation, including the perspectives of the labor and environmental communities.
February 28, 2000 - Congressman Kucinich sent a letter to the Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) expressing his concern over recent mergers in the pharmaceutical industry. The mergers effect on the future of competition in high technology areas of medicine could be quite detrimental. The letter asked the FTC to look into the implications of this matter and publish a study on the results.
February 11, 2000 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to President Clinton encouraging the President to stop actions meant to deny more environmental input and advocates in trade advisory panels to refrain from commenting officially to the World Trade Organization (WTO) on other countries environmental measures without first seeking public comment in the U.S. on the Administration’s position.
December 24, 1999 - Congressman Kucinich sent a letter to the Overseas Chinese Democracy coalition regarding the pending decision to grant China permanent Post- Favored-Nation trading status. The letter encourages their actions in service of democracy and human rights.
November 18, 1999 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Trade proposing that he hold comprehensive hearings on the impact of the proposed agreement of China’s accession to the World Trade Organization.
November 16, 1999 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to President Clinton expressing concern that the current trade rules of the World Trade Organization may be contributing to a reduction of the environmental and consumer protections in the United States and abroad.
November 12, 1999 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to President Clinton opposing the authorization of the Treasury Department’s proposal to use the appropriations process to authorize the sale of gold reserves held by the International Monetary Fund and condition multilateral debt reduction on IMF austerity programs.
October 20, 1999 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to Ambassador Barshefsky supporting the renewal of World Trade Organization "green-light" subsidy rules to ensure that some of the most popular economic development strategies in the United States cannot be attacked.
October 18, 1999 - Congressman Kucinich wrote a letter to Professor Robert Stumberg at Georgetown University Law Center expressing desire to join the amicus brief on behalf of members of Congress in support of the Massachusetts Petition for Certiorari in the Burma law case. The original case overturned the Massachusetts Burma law on grounds the law was preempted by federal sanctions on Burma, and that the law encroached upon federal foreign affairs power.
October 10, 1999 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to Ambassador Barshefsky posing questions about consequences to auto industry of China’s inclusion in the World Trade Organization and what actions are being done to prevent negative consequences.
October 6, 1999 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to Ambassador Barshefsky raising concerns surrounding the letter alleging that the European Union acted without adequate scientific evidence banning antibiotics, and thus may violate a World Trade Organization Agreement.
September 29, 1999 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) opposing new United States resources for the IMF and sale of IMF gold unless the IMF makes fundamental reforms.
September 29, 1999 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund urging him to provide immediate debt relief to heavily indebted poor countries and delink debt relief from structural adjustment programs.
September 17, 1999 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to President Clinton urging him to proclaim an effective, four-year program of import relief to the wire rod industry to restore it world-class competitiveness.
July 28, 1999 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to President Clinton expressing concern with World Trade Organization negotiations on a trade liberalization agreement for wood products.
July 16, 1999 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to Ambassador Barshefsky expressing concern over the manner in which the World Trade Organization is interpreting the SPS agreement which includes guidelines that fall below US standards.
July 1, 1999 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to President Clinton expressing concern about granting China Most Favored Nation trade status until progress is made on labor and human rights, proliferation and environmental issues.
June 24, 1999 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to the president urging him to maintain current U.S.-Mexican cross-border trucking restrictions to protect the safety of the traveling public and commercial drivers.
May 23, 1999 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to President Wolfensohn of the World Bank requesting him to reconsider a proposal to fund the Chad-Cameroon pipeline project because the project raises concern for human rights violations and corruption, social and environmental impacts.
April 12, 1999 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to President Clinton requesting his signature on H.R. 975, the Bipartisan Steel Recovery Act, which would impose quotas on steel imports.
March 29, 1999 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to President Clinton to express opposition to the Administration’s agreement with the People’s Republic of China in support of WTO accession without Congressional approval.
March 12, 1999 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund to express the belief that the US should refuse to continue financial support to the IMF unless it actively demonstrates a commitment to new economic policies, new mechanisms of accountability and greater transparency.
February 24, 1999 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to House Speaker Dennis Hastert to request that substantive steel legislation be brought to the floor as soon as possible to keep steelworker jobs and maintain the strength of the US steel industry.
February 15, 1999 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to urge President Clinton to take a more aggressive approach to cease the flood of unfairly traded steel on the US market and protect US steelworker jobs.
January 27, 1999 - Congressman Kucinich co-signed a letter to the President to recommend that the Administration restrict steel imports against cartel-like Japanese practices.
Bills Cosponsored in the 107th Congress, 1st Session
H.R. 460- The Truth Act of 2001. A bill that requires companies to make available critical information about the workplace conditions to workers making its products.
H. R. 152- A bill that urges the President to continue delaying a NAFTA provision which gives Mexican truckers and trucks unregulated access to the United States.
H.R. 2181- The Softwood Lumber Fair Trade Act. A bill to impose certain restrictions on imports of softwood lumber products of Canada.
H.R. 1988- Trade Reform Act of 1974. Repeals a requirement that the cause of serious injury be substantial tot the domestic industry producing as article like or directly competitive with an article that is being imported into the United States with respect to the President’s taking action to facilitate efforts by such industry to make a positive adjustment to the important to the import competition.
H.R. 1819 - Free Trade Community Relief Act - This bill would provide the Secretary of Commerce with the authority to designating certain areas as NAFTA-Impacted Communities, especially in rural or inner city areas where displaced workers have few options re-employment.
HR 635 - Steel Industry National Historic Park Act - A bill to preserve the steel heritage of the Pittsburgh region.
H.Con. Res.. 234 - A resolution stating the sense of the Congress we act to protect American steel because of its importance as a building material and because it is unwise to rely on foreign imports of such an important resource.
H.R. 837 - A bill to provide that, for purposes of making determinations for certain trade remedies and trade adjustment assistance, imported semi-finished steel slabs and taconite pellets produced in the United States shall be considered to be articles like or directly competitive with each other.
H. Con. Res. 308 - Anti-”Laogai” Act: A resolution against importing products made in Chinese prison-labor factories.
HR 1997 - Tax Haven Identity Act: A bill to mandate identification of tax havens in foreign countries, to require taxpayers to report related transactions in foreign countries, and to disallow foreign tax credits for tax havens in foreign countries.
HR 3188 - Consumer Access to a Responsible Accounting of Trade Act of 2000 - A bill that labels the country of origin of diamonds.
HR 884 - A bill to require prior congressional approval before the United States supports the admission of the People's Republic of China into the World Trade Organization, and to provide for the withdrawal of the United States from the World Trade Organization if China is accepted into the WTO without the support of the United States.
HR 412 - Trade Fairness Act of 1999: A bill to make it easier to bring trade law cases against dumping countries.
H J RES 57 - China Trade resolution: A joint resolution disapproving the extension of nondiscriminatory treatment (normal trade relations) to the products of the People’s Republic of China.
HR 975 - Steel Recovery Act: A bill to provide for a reduction in the volume of steel imports, and to establish a steel import notification and monitoring program.
HR 2995 - A bill to require the marking of frozen produce with the country of origin on the front panel of the package for retail sale.
HR 1967 - NAFTA Impact Relief Act: A bill to provide tax incentives and job training grants for communities affected by the migration of businesses and jobs to Canada or Mexico as a result of the North American Free Trade Agreement.
HR 2595 - A bill to provide a moratorium on the export of bulk fresh water until certain conditions are met.
HR 1621 - Made in USA Label Defense Act of 1999: A bill to prohibit the use of the "Made in USA" label on products of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and to deny such products duty-free and quota-free treatment.
H CON RES 132 - A concurrent resolution expressing the sense of the Congress in opposition to gold sales to fund the International Monetary Fund’s failed Enhancement Structural Adjustment Facility (ESAF).
HR 2193 - America’s Footwear Workers Protection Act: A bill to prevent Caribbean footwear workers from receiving duty free status.
HR 1505 - Fair Trade Law Enhancement Act of 1999: A bill to prevent the "dumping"of products in the United States steel market by foreign steel companies.
H RES 298 - A resolution calling on the President to abstain from renegotiating international agreements governing anti- "dumping" and countervailing measures.
HR 2700 - Highly Essential Lifesaving Pharmaceuticals for Africa Act HELP for Africa Act: A bill to ensure that any federal funding for clinical research in Africa follows the same ethical guidelines as research conducted in the USA. The bill also protects the rights of African countries to import lower cost pharmaceuticals through GATT by legal means.
HR 772 - HOPE for Africa Act, Human Rights, Opportunity, Partnership and Empowerment for Africa Act: A bill to authorize a new trade, investment, and development policy for sub- Saharan Africa that is mutually beneficial to the majority of people in sub-Saharan Africa and the United States.
HR 506 - A bill to ensure that the volume of steel imports does not exceed the average monthly volume of such imports during the 36-month period preceding July 1997.
HR 1885 - A bill to provide for facilitating the importation into the United States of certain drugs that have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration.
HR 3027 - Russian Economic Restoration and Justice Act of 1999: A bill to propose principles governing the provision of International Monetary Fund assistance to Russia.
HR 2939 - The Debt Relief and IMF Reform Act of 1999: A bill to cancel the debts of the world’s most poorest countries and to reform the International Monetary Fund.
