|
Earlier this afternoon,
President Trump addressed the World Economic Form in Davos, Switzerland. In a clear and calm speech, the President talked about America, and he talked about trade. He reminded the audience, as he often does, that America is his first priority, but he also included familiar caveats and contextual elements, namely, that he expects other national leaders to put their countries first, and, as in today's quote, that first does not mean alone.
The TPP Signal. In the trade portion of his speech, President Trump opened the door to the possibility that the TPP may be in America's future after all. We shall conclude this Context portion with two quotes from that speech.
On his larger priorities, the President said:
I believe in America. As President of the United States, I will always put America first, just like the leaders of other countries should put their country first also.
But America first does not mean America alone. When the United States grows, so does the world. American prosperity has created countless jobs all around the globe, and the drive for excellence, creativity, and innovation in the U.S. has led to important discoveries that help people everywhere live more prosperous and far healthier lives.
On trade and the trading system, the President said:
As the United States pursues domestic reforms to unleash jobs and growth, we are also working to reform the international trading system so that it promotes broadly shared prosperity and rewards to those who play by the rules.
We cannot have free and open trade if some countries exploit the system at the expense of others. We support free trade, but it needs to be fair and it needs to be reciprocal. Because, in the end, unfair trade undermines us all.
The United States will no longer turn a blind eye to unfair economic practices, including massive intellectual property theft, industrial subsidies, and pervasive state-led economic planning. These and other predatory behaviors are distorting the global markets and harming businesses and workers, not just in the U.S., but around the globe.
Just like we expect the leaders of other countries to protect their interests, as President of the United States, I will always protect the interests of our country, our companies, and our workers.
We will enforce our trade laws and restore integrity to our trading system. Only by insisting on fair and reciprocal trade can we create a system that works not just for the U.S. but for all nations.
As I have said, the United States is prepared to negotiate mutually beneficial, bilateral trade agreements with all countries. This will include the countries in TPP, which are very important. We have agreements with several of them already. We would consider negotiating with the rest, either individually, or perhaps as a group, if it is in the interests of all.
As usual, the added emphasis in the above quotes is our own.
|
