Under the failed policies and misplaced priorities of the last seven years, our middle class has seen more than three million manufacturing jobs with good benefits vanish. At the same time, the Bush Administration has run up massive and ever growing trade deficits, outsourced white collar jobs, and allowed for the importation of unsafe food, toys and other consumer items that fail to meet our national health and safety standards. These developments threaten our nation’s economic and national security as well as the health and welfare of our children and families.
America needs a President who has the skills, experience and commitment to change these trends. America needs someone who will fight to open foreign markets to our farmers and companies, someone who will not permit jobs to be outsourced to workers overseas, someone who will create better jobs here at home, and someone who will ensure we have a trading system in place with rules that raise the standard of living for American families. As President, Chris Dodd will fill this role. He will fight for our nation's long term economic growth and security by:
- Insisting on fair trade, vigorously enforcing existing trade agreements and ensuring that new trade agreements include strong worker and environmental protections.
- Ending currency manipulation by foreign countries such as China by preventing them from artificially lowering their prices in America at the expense of American-made goods.
- Opening up new markets to American businesses and farmers so American-made products are more readily available to consumers around the world.
- Investing in American renewable energy to ensure that the American Midwest, not the Middle East, is the world’s primary source of new energies.
- Partnering with businesses to ensure that America stays ahead of the globalization curve, not behind it.
- Keeping good jobs in America.
- Creating high-quality jobs at home while ensuring a well-educated and well-trained workforce.
- Ensuring that goods imported into America are not harmful to the health and welfare of our citizens, especially children.
Chris Dodd believes it is time America had a President who knows how to get results and bring people together to turn Democratic principles into American policies. As a United States Senator, he brought Democrats and Republicans together on legislation that would force China and other countries to stop illegal currency manipulation. He passed legislation to strengthen investigations of business deals in which foreign governments and investors attempt to buy U.S. companies and industries vital to our national security. He succeeded in passing legislation that required the Bush Administration to actively monitor and discourage the use of so-called “offset contracts” which have resulted in the loss of American jobs. And, Chris Dodd was the first Democratic Presidential candidate to call for the immediate suspension of the importation of unsafe toys from China.
Free Trade Must be Fair Trade
Trade That’s Fair To America. Chris Dodd will broker trade agreements that benefit American businesses and farmers. As President, he will aggressively enforce current trade agreements and negotiate new ones that include strong labor and environmental standards. Under his Administration, Chris Dodd will ensure that the prices of American goods are never unfairly undercut by products from overseas. He will reject trade agreements that rely on forced labor or labor that is working in unfair or unsafe conditions and require trading partners to meet environmental standards. Under a Dodd Administration, the days of American businesses and farmers getting the short end of trade agreements will end. The cost of doing business in America will never be undermined by unfair and unjust business practices by foreign competitors.
Putting an End to Currency Manipulation. For too long, countries like China have illegally manipulated the value of their currency against World Trade Organization (WTO) rules to gain unfair trade advantages. In so doing, they artificially lower their prices in America, undercutting honest American companies that make similar products but cannot compete against those cheating the system. As President, Chris Dodd will put an end to this by immediately designating China and others who illegally engage in this practice as currency manipulators, holding them accountable before the WTO, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and the International Trade Commission.
Opening New Markets
New Markets for American Businesses and Farmers. As President, Chris Dodd will create new opportunities for American businesses and farmers by opening up new markets for our manufacturing, agricultural, high-tech, and financial products. As he has for decades, Chris Dodd will continue to fight to reduce trade barriers against American industries and reinvigorate the Department of Commerce to ensure that it is aggressively and effectively promoting a National Export strategy that places American products on foreign shelves. With over twenty years experience as a foreign policy leader, Chris Dodd has the understanding and relationships required to open new markets to American businesses and farmers.
Ending the Cuban Trade Embargo. Today’s American farmers could be losing as much as $350 million worth of exports each year as a result of the Cuban trade embargo. As President, Chris Dodd will end the current trade embargo by repealing the Helms-Burton Act and amending the Trade Sanctions Reform Act to ensure access to Cuba’s market for U.S. farms and firms.
New Sectors, New exports, New American Jobs
America – the World’s Premier Source of Renewable Energy. In developing alternative energy, America has a unique opportunity to become a global leader in a major 21st century industry. To make sure that American companies and farmers are poised to develop, create and export renewable energy and biofuel technology and resources, Chris Dodd will create a Renewable Energy Trust that will grant family farmers interest free loans of up to $100,000 to develop or expand their capacity to produce biofuel plants or participate in wind projects. As President, he will also provide $1 billion in loan guarantees and grants to promote necessary advances in production technology and bioscience and extend and expand tax credits designed to encourage American production of alternative energy sources. Chris Dodd will provide dedicated funds for the Export-Import Bank to more actively promote American renewable energy and technology as a world resource to help American businesses and farmers reach foreign energy markets. With the boldest, furthest reaching energy plan of any Presidential candidate, Chris Dodd will ensure that the world’s future energy comes from the American Midwest, not the Middle East.
Keeping American Jobs in America. Chris Dodd believes that it is time to stop rewarding companies that move their manufacturing operations overseas. He will end tax preferences that subsidize companies when they relocate overseas, forbid American companies from receiving a tax benefit if they move a factory offshore and then re-import goods, and prohibit federal contracts from being awarded to firms who violate American labor practices. Chris Dodd will not allow American defense jobs to go overseas or let foreign governments or investors buy American assets vital to our national security. He will also invest further in the Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) program to ensure that hardworking Americans who have seen their jobs “outsourced,” remain employed in jobs whose wages and benefits are comparable to their prior employment.
Quality Exports, Quality Jobs. As President, Chris Dodd will create an American Business Abroad Initiative within the Export-Import Bank that will provide more low-cost loans to American businesses that employ American workers to further expand their ability to produce goods for export. These loans will be available to all companies but they will focus on high growth sectors such as biotechnology to better stimulate new, high wage jobs in areas that are likely to be major exports for the new economy. Under Chris Dodd’s leadership, America will be ahead of the globalization curve, not behind it.
Partnering with Small Business. America cannot sustain its record trade deficit. To reduce the massive trade deficits while growing our economy, Chris Dodd will implement a comprehensive export strategy to increase American exports, including an immediate elimination of the fees the Department of Commerce charges small businesses to help them do business overseas. Chris Dodd believes government must be a partner and ally for small businesses to help them grow and create quality new jobs, not a bureaucratic hindrance.
Creating Quality Jobs at Home. As President, Chris Dodd will cut through bureaucratic red tape, invest in communities and partner with businesses and entrepreneurs to help our businesses grow. He will create over 4 million new jobs with his National Infrastructure Bank initiative which partners the federal government with state governments, local governments and the private sector in an effort to improve our nation’s roads, bridges, dams and water supply. He will expand government programs, like the Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP), that bolster the manufacturing industry and he will support tax policies, like the Research and Development Tax Credit, that stimulate growth. Chris Dodd will also expand MANTECH, the Department of Defense program that supports research and development of advanced manufacturing technologies, to ensure our security here at home. As President, Chris Dodd will also ensure that high-quality American jobs come with high-quality job benefits: affordable and universal health care, access to Universal 401k accounts, and paid Family and Medical Leave.
A Highly-Skilled Workforce for the 21st Century Economy. Continuing education is fast becoming a mandatory investment for individuals who wish to remain employable or make career changes. To remain competitive in the workplace, it is essential that workers have ready access to further training and development. As President, Chris Dodd will ensure that American workers have the training and skills that they need by providing every American with the opportunity to attend community college for free. He will also create tax incentives that encourage employers to support efforts by employees who wish to improve their professional and technical skills. Free community college, coupled with investments in continuing education and training, will create greater economic security for American families, American businesses, and our country as a whole.
Keeping American Consumers Safe
Stopping Unsafe Imports at the Border. As President, Chris Dodd will ensure the safety of American consumers and children, not the profits of companies that import unsafe products. He will double the number of import inspectors and demand the rigorous inspection of products imported from overseas. Chris Dodd will immediately suspend all imports found to be unsafe, including toys that are discovered to contain lead or any other illegal or unsafe product. A Dodd Administration will hold all of our trading partners accountable to treaties that have high safety standards.
Informing Consumers. Everyone deserves to know what they are buying. As President, Chris Dodd will require that imported goods contain information about where they are made as well as where they are assembled. Chris Dodd will create a “Surgeon General’s” warning for products that come from countries that have problematic safety records. This warning will be the result of a new Commerce Department database of imports from countries that have violated consumer safety laws and regulations. If imports from a specific country are repeat offenders, consumers will be informed that the product they are buying is from a nation on the “Consumer Protection Watch List.” This will give Americans the opportunity to make their own decisions to better protect themselves and their families, as well as create an incentive for responsible overseas companies to pressure offenders into eliminating unsafe practices before they reach American borders. He will hold importers accountable for the unsafe food and products they bring in to our country. Chris Dodd also supports country of origin labeling for agricultural products imported from overseas.
Proven Leadership That Gets Results
America needs a President with the right priorities. But just as importantly, it needs a President who knows how to get results and bring people together to turn Democratic principles into American policies. Chris Dodd has:
- Led the effort that brought Democrats and Republicans together on legislation that would force China and other countries to stop illegal currency manipulation.
- Developed and passed legislation to strengthen the investigations of business deals in which foreign governments and investors attempt to buy U.S. companies and industries vital to our national security.
- Promoted export growth through leadership in expanding working institutions like the Export-Import Bank.
- Succeeded in passing legislation that required the Bush Administration to actively monitor and discourage the use of so-called “offset contracts” which have resulted in the loss of American jobs.
- Was the first Democratic Presidential Candidate to call for the immediate suspension of the importation of unsafe toys from China.
