mr. speaker , i yield myself such time as i may consume .  in quick response to the gentleman from vermont , our economy is growing jobs at the rate of about 200 , 000 a month .  productivity is higher than it has ever been .  our economy is the fastest growing economy at 4.3 percent per year .  the economy is strong in the united states .  unemployment figures are down below 5 percent .  it is lower than it was in any of the previous decades .  our economy is strong and it is growing , and it is growing because of the type of legislation that we are passing .  we can not be protectionists and retain the strong economy that we have in a world that is going free trade .  you may not like free trade , but the world is going free trade .  and if we are going to compete in the global economy , we need to move towards free trade , and we need to be careful in negotiating these agreements one after the other .  