mr. speaker , i yield myself the balance of my time . 
there is quite a bit of ground that we have covered here this morning . 
one is that somehow cafta has been brought into this debate by a couple of speakers . 
i would like to submit for printing in the record a letter dated june 8 , 2005 , which was just yesterday , from former president jimmy carter to mr. bill thomas , the chairman of the ways and means committee , in support of cafta . 
in this letter , he says , if the united states congress were to turn its back on cafta , it would undercut these fragile democracies , compel them to retreat to protectionism , and make it harder for them to cooperate with the united states . 
this is the type of bipartisan cooperation that we are about here today . 
it is important , i think , to realize that this resolution came before the ways and means committee because we were required to take it up if it were to be filed under the law originally bringing us into the world trade organization . 
on both sides of the aisle , i believe i am correct on this , that the decision by the ways and means committee to report this out unfavorably to the house , which we had to do procedurally , but to report it out unfavorably , i think , was unanimous on both sides of the aisle . 
there is criticism as to what is happening , and some people would like to change some of the things within the framework of the world trade organization , but the ways and means committee , i think , was very , very responsible . 
now the question of jobs and the economy has been raised , and china has been brought into this debate . 
china has got some problems with their currency and some things we need to do and their enforcement of their own laws . 
i will yield that ground to those that bring that criticism to us . 
but i think it is important to realize where those jobs are coming from or where those exports , who are the winners and losers with regard to the chinese exports . 
the chinese exports are draining off the exports from japan , korea and other pacific asian countries . 
that is where those jobs are coming from . 
if you talk about and look at exactly the exports into the united states from that region of the world , you will see that it is fairly flat , not for china , but china is increasing its exports at the expense of these other countries . 
the question has been brought into this debate as to the sovereignty of the united states . 
it is very clear to anyone , any of the lawmakers in this congress , that congress and the president make united states laws . 
the world trade organization can not change laws either today or in the future . 
the world trade organization has no enforcement authority . 
it can not impose fines , levies , sanctions , modify tariff rates or change the laws of any country . 
the only sanction for a violation of the world trade organization is that affected world trade organization member , and that member country may in some cases impose retaliatory measures on trade of the country that violates the rules . 
but that is not enforcement by the world trade organization . 
the on the question of jobs and the exporting of american jobs , exports account for about 25 percent of the united states economic growth over the course of the past decade . 
exports support an estimated 12 million jobs , and those workers ' wages are estimated to pay 13 to 18 percent more on the average than nonexport jobs . 
united states exports directly support one in every five manufacturing jobs . 
workers in most trade-engaged industries where combined exports and imports amount to at least 40 percent of their domestic industrial output earn an annual compensation package that is one-third more than the average compensation in the least trade-engaged sectors . 
a recent university of michigan study shows that lowering remaining global trade barriers by just one-third would boost annual average family income by an additional $ 2 , 500 . 
so if you are interested in jobs , vote against this resolution . 
if you are interested in the economy and the growth of our economy of this united states , vote against this resolution . 
if you want chaos in world trade , vote for it , because that would exactly be what we would have . 
we would have total chaos . 
it would be the wild , wild west . 
i think that the only responsible vote here today for the american worker and the american economy is to vote no on this resolution . 
june 8 , 2005 . 
to representative bill thomas : as you prepare for your initial consideration of the central american free trade agreement ( cafta ) with the nations of central america and the dominican republic , i want to express my strong support for this progressive move . 
from a trade perspective , this will help both the united states and central america . 
some 80 percent of central america 's exports to the u.s. are already duty free , so they will be opening their markets to u.s. exports more than we will for their remaining products . 
independent studies indicate that u.s. incomes will rise by over $ 15 billion and those in central america by some $ 5 billion . 
new jobs will be created in central america , and labor standards are likely to improve as a result of cafta . 
some improvements could be made in the trade bill , particularly on the labor protection side , but , more importantly our own national security and hemispheric influence will be enhanced with improved stability , democracy , and development in our poor , fragile neighbors in central america and the caribbean . 
during my presidency and now at the carter center , i have been dedicated to the promotion of democracy and stability in the region . 
from the negotiation of the panama canal treaties and the championing of human rights at the time when the region suffered under military dictatorships to the monitoring of a number of free elections in the region , central america has been a major focus of my attention . 
there now are democratically elected governments in each of the countries covered by cafta . 
in negotiating this agreement , the president of each of the six nations had to content with their own companies that fear competition with u.s. firms . 
they have put their credibility on the line , not only with this trade agreement but more broadly by promoting market reforms that have been urged for decades by u.s. presidents of both parties . 
if the u.s. congress were to turn its back on cafta , it would undercut these fragile democracies , compel them to retreat to protectionism , and make it harder for them to cooperate with the u.s. for the first time ever , we have a chance to reinforce democracies in the region . 
this is the moment to move forward and to help those leaders that want to modernize and humanize their countries . 
moreover , strong economies in the region are the best antidote to illegal immigration from the region . 
in appreciate your consideration of my views and hope they will be helpful in your important deliberations . 
sincerley , 