Trade
Washington, DC – Congressman Adrian Smith (R-NE) led a bipartisan letter with Congressman Ron Kind (D-WI) urging U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk to ensure the strongest possible sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measures in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) to promote American agricultural exports across the Asia-Pacific region.
America’s relationship with Russia is complex. Russia is currently the world’s ninth largest economy and growing. In 2011 alone, Nebraska exported $154 million worth of goods to Russia, which directly supported an estimated 560 jobs here at home. However, I and many others remain concerned regarding Russia’s recent behavior and trading policies.
America’s economy is stagnant and showing few signs of growth. The private sector is being strangled by government regulation, an overly-complex and uncompetitive tax code, and uncertainty generated by the threat of tax increases, an onerous health care law, and the ever expanding national debt.
Washington, DC – Congressman Adrian Smith (R-NE) today sent a letter to U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk and U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack asking they work with the Colombian government to remove its unjustified sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) requirements on certain pork imports. This unscientific trade barrier would cause U.S. pork producers not to realize the full economic benefits possible under the recently-passed Colombia Free Trade Agreement.
Washington, D.C.– Congressman Adrian Smith (R-NE) announced today he recently visited Pakistan, Kyrgyzstan and Armenia in conjunction with the House Democracy Partnership (HDP). The purpose of this bipartisan Congressional delegation was to conduct meetings with Pakistani legislative and government officials, launch a new HDP partnership with the Kyrgyzstan legislature, and conduct meetings related to democratic development and bilateral foreign policy issues in Armenia. A scheduled visit to Afghanistan was cancelled due to weather in the region.
As we close the book on 2011, there is no question political brinksmanship prevented opportunities for America to move forward. There were, however, consequential, bipartisan accomplishments which will benefit the country. One area where Republicans and Democrats, Congress and the White House were all able to come together was advancing an aggressive trade agenda.
One of the most significant challenges holding back the American economy is our overly complex and outdated tax code. Instead of having tax policy to encourage hiring American workers and investing here in the United States, our obsolete tax system incentivizes businesses to leave profits and jobs overseas. This dynamic is stifling job growth here in Nebraska and across the country. If we are serious about stimulating our economy, it is time to reform the tax system to make the United States a more competitive place to invest and create much-needed jobs.