In his State of the Union Address of yesterday, his longest and his last, President Bill Clinton urged the United States "to move forward on trade". " open markets and rules-based trade are the best engines we know for raising living standards, reducing global poverty and environmental destruction, and assuring the free flow of ideas," he said. He stressed the importance of being a good neighbor and trading partner. "We cannot build our future without helping others to build theirs," he said. "And we must make developing economies our partners in prosperity which is why I ask Congress to finalize our groundbreaking African and Caribbean Basin Trade initiatives." He also advocated that "we must do our part in the global endeavor to reduce the debts of the poorest countries so they can invest in education, health and economic growth — as the Pope and other religious leaders have urged. Last year, Congress made a down payment on America’s share. And I ask for your continued support." To read the actual text of the speech, see http://www.whitehouse.gov/WH/SOTU00/sotu-text.html The above-mentioned CBI legislation would drop quotas and duties on U.S-bound apparel from both Africa and the Caribbean Basin, benefiting the DR. The US textile industry is supporting the bill, as the legislation’s duty-free provisions would give them a much-needed competitive edge once global apparel and textile quotas are eliminated in 2005. The roadblock facing the passing of the legislation is the determination of whether only U.S. textiles are used in apparel receiving trade breaks, as per the Senate bill. The House version permits the use of textiles from anywhere.
