Washington,DC – Ways and Means Ranking Member Dave Camp (R-MI) and Trade SubcommitteeRanking Member Kevin Brady (R-TX) issued the following statement today inresponse to the second anniversary of the expiration of Trade PromotionAuthority (TPA):  

“If the Speaker were serious about helping American workers, she would begranting the President TPA instead of inviting international retaliation underher new national energy tax bill,” said Camp. “It has been two years since TPAexpired, and our economy needs all the help it can get. It is past time forCongress to give the President TPA and put back in play one of our best weaponsto create economic opportunity for American workers. Just as I supportedTPA for Presidents Clinton and Bush, I support TPA for President Obama.”

TradeSubcommittee Ranking Member Brady added, “The failure to grant the Presidentthis vital authority amounts to unilaterally ceding the field to our tradingpartners. Experience teaches us that if America voluntarily benchesitself, the global trade contest continues – with or without us. The last timewe did this – when President Clinton was without fast-track authority from 1994to 2002 – the rest of the world pressed ahead, negotiating over 130 free tradeagreements while America sat on the sidelines and our workers and companieslost out.”