mr. speaker , i rise in support of this rule and in very , very strong opposition to what this resolution is attempting to do . 
the great economist milton friedman once said , `` underlying most arguments against the free market is a lack of belief in freedom itself. '' now , mr. speaker , if we listen carefully to the reasons we commonly hear for abandoning our open trade agenda , it becomes very clear that milton friedman was absolutely right . 
we hear these claims all the time : free trade agreements will leave working families without good jobs . 
trade liberalization will weaken worker rights in developing countries . 
lowering barriers to open trade will devastate the environment . 
the underlying claim is that greater economic freedom will harm americans and our trading partners alike , but this fear of freedom is not based in fact . 
following world war ii , the world 's major trading partners came together , the global leaders , and established the general agreement on tariffs and trade , the gatt . 
this agreement was designed to establish an international system of fair trade rules , pursuing that goal of the complete elimination of tariff and nontariff barriers , providing a forum for trading partners to settle any disputes that existed . 
the general agreement on tariffs and trade was the predecessor to what is now known as the world trade organization . 
through trade liberalization that the gatt and the wto have enabled , with the existence of those , have seen average tariffs in industrialized countries go from 40 percent down to 4 percent , spurring a six-fold increase in global gdp . 
and , of course , remember , a tariff is a tax , so by reducing that tariff burden , through the goal of the gatt and now the wto , we have been able to reduce the tax burden on consumers throughout the world . 
so we have seen , by virtue of that 40 percent to 4 percent reduction , a six-fold increase in gross domestic product growth . 
since the creation of the world trade organization 11 years ago , u.s. exports have increased by $ 300 billion . 
we have seen our exports since the establishment of the wto increase by $ 300 billion . 
over this time period , exports have come to support over 25 percent of the economic growth that we enjoy in the united states . 
remember , we have a , virtually , almost $ 11 trillion economy here in the united states . 
25 percent of the growth in that economy is due to exports . 
open trade and investment has netted an extra $ 1 trillion in u.s. income every year , or about $ 10 , 000 per household , as a result of those reductions that we have seen in tariff and nontariff barriers . 
as the world 's largest exporter and importer , the united states has the most to gain from the lower trade barriers and fairer global trade rules that the wto brings . 
by reducing tariffs , strengthening intellectual property protection , and increasing transparency in all of the 148 member countries , the wto is our largest , most comprehensive , and most effective forum for expanding markets and creating new opportunities for americans . 
the wto has also been an important tool for the united states in ensuring that international trade commitments are honored . 
of the 47 wto cases brought by the united states that have been concluded , 44 have been resolved in our favor . 
that is a 94 percent success rate for the united states of america within the structure of the world trade organization . 
our wto membership has been absolutely critical in maintaining our global economic leadership . 
with 80 percent of the world 's economy and 95 percent of the world 's consumers outside of the united states , our role in the wto remains essential to opening new markets and expanding existing ones for u.s. producers , service providers , and investors . 
but the wto is not our only forum for liberalizing trade rules and expanding foreign markets for american goods and services . 
the free trade agreement negotiating process has long been highly successful in opening up new opportunities for americans . 
we are on the forefront of i hope passing the dominican republic central american free trade agreement , which is critical to continuing on that path of prosperity that began with the gatt back in 1947 and has continued through the wto , the north american free trade agreement , and a wide range of bilateral agreements that we have put together over the past several years with israel , jordan , chile , singapore , australia and morocco , among others . 
dr-cafta will make our trading relationship with the region reciprocal by granting u.s. producers the same access to their markets that the dominican republic-central american producers have long enjoyed in ours . 
it will boost the competitiveness and productivity of american companies and workers by providing an export and investment destination that fully respects the rule of law and protects intellectual property rights . 
but even more important , mr. speaker , it will empower the dominican republic-central american countries to experience the economic growth , increased prosperity , and rising living standards that americans have long enjoyed . 
all of the benefits of trade that i have described , greater family incomes , export-supported growth , transparent and fair trading rules for u.s. companies that participate in the global marketplace , these are all benefits , these are all benefits that our neighbors in latin america deserve to enjoy along with us . 
again , there are many who will argue against greater economic freedom . 
they will say that it will cost american jobs . 
they will say that workers and the environment and the dr-cafta bill will be devastating . 
they will in effect argue that the region is too poor to trade with us . 
but we can not let this unfounded fear of economic freedom cause us to abandon our very important open trade agenda . 
we are very fortunate to have our former colleague , rob portman , now serving as our ambassador , as the representative , the head of focusing on the whole issue of trade , the u.s. trade representative for us . 
we have to work closely with him , through the world trade organization , to tear down tariff and nontariff barriers to trade . 
we must continue to utilize this very important forum to ensure that our trading partners stick with their commitment . 
living with a rules-based trading system is the only way that we are going to be able to vigorously pursue the diminution of those barriers to the free flow of goods and services throughout the world . 
so , for the sake of the american people , for the sake of those throughout the world who are seeking to get onto the first rung of the economic ladder , it is absolutely imperative that the united states of america maintain its leadership role in the world trade organization . 
