Wednesday, September 14, 2011

U.S. Senator Johnny Isakson (R-GA)
Floor Statement on Trade Agreements

I represent a State that is home to the second largest port on the eastern seaboard in the United States of America. The port is Savannah. We are talking about creating jobs in America. The port of Savannah directly employs 300,000 people in the southeastern United States. Can you think of what an impact this is going to have to increase that employment if we get these free trade agreements?

Let me give you an example that is amazing. South Korea surpassed Japan in 2010 as the second largest Northeast Asian destination for South Atlantic exports behind only China--second largest in all of Asia behind only China--most of that going out of the port of Savannah, most of that being agricultural products from your State and from your State and from mine.

Senator Portman talked about pork. In Georgia it is all about chickens and cattle. We are No. 1 in poultry, and South Korea is a huge importer of our poultry. They would be a lot bigger with a free trade agreement.

Let me give another number that is chilling. South Korea's imports from South Korea into the United States went up by 26 percent last year. Our exports to them went up by 15 percent. That is an 11-percent negative in the trade deficit, which causes us tremendous problems.

So my point is very simply this: We can help to balance our trade deficit. We can help to increase employment in the southeastern United States. We can help poultry, we can help pork, and we can help beef. It has been 968 days since the President could have sent us these free trade agreements, and he has not. My point in this debate is very simple. There is one person in the United States of America standing between us and more job creation, and it is the resident of the White House, President Obama.