inance committee are coming in. we start this hearing. it features michael bowman. the u.s. trade representative. the trade policy of the obama administration. >> the committee will come to order. good morning, it is a pleasure

to welcome everyone to today's hearing on our nation's trade agenda. i have to say that the trade agenda is looking up since the last time you testified. things seem to be improving with our trade negotiation. for example, will significantly gaffes remain, the menstruation symmetry inching ever closer to the transpacific partnership agreement. this comes after a long period of decline. of course, there is still a lot to be done aand tpa is at the top of my list. things seem to be looking up. compared to this time last year, this demonstration is much more engaged in making the case for a renewal of tpa.

president obama strong call for strong tpa in the state of the union was welcome, though in my opinion, long overdue. the latest call action was a real concerted effort to get tpa to congress. here in the finance committee, we're doing every weekend to make a strong effort. i'm currently working with a senator to see if there's a way to address some issues that he has raised. we are working with chairman ryan as well. while there may be some influence and we can make to the bill, what to make one thing clear. the time for tpa is now. in tpa, powers are negotiated to get the best deal possible for american workers. to succeed in getting tpa renewed, we'll need an all out effort by the menstruation to make the case as to why it tpa

is so vital to our nation's ability to fairly engage in international trade. sibling put, trade means jobs. today, 95% of our consumers live outside the united states. these potential customers account for 92% of global economic growth and 80% of purchasing power. to maintain a healthy economy, we need the ability to sell in these markets. right now, we're engaging in some of the most ambitious trade agreements in our history. the first is the transpacific partnership, or tpp. without tpa, the menstruation will have a hard time bringing about the high standard legislation that congress needs. it would be hard for the

administration to close tp a without enacting tpp. there are also some key outstanding issues that need to be resolved with tpp. as i stated in the past, my support for tpa ensures that i will support just about any version of tpp submitted to congress for approval. for me, the agreement must have very high standards for intellectual property, including strong trademark and copyright protections. they must also effectively address the theft of trade secrets. provisions to enhance digital trade and state owned enterprises are also critical.

there are also major negotiations are ongoing. i'm confident that the renewal tph __ tpa would help us to bring us to successful conclusions. most significantly there is ttip. the agreement must also achieve a high level of ip protection, and effectively address the systemic misuse of geographical indications to create market barriers. i'm also hopeful that the menstruation will build to conclude a negotiation to update the information technology agreement, and that we will see progress in passing that agreement in an and

environmental goods agreement. if i have not been clear up until now, let me restate. tpa must be considered an essential element for all these others. tpa will unleash new energy, helping our economy propelled to new growth and prosperity. history shows that trade agreements create new economic opportunities, and importantly, higher_paying american jobs. this year, we truly are at the precipice of opportunity. the only question is whether congress and the menstruation can work together to put in place the necessary tools to seize this opportunity. i certainly think we can, and i will do everything within my power to ensure our mutual success. ambassador, i look for it your

testimony today and working with you to advance a strong trade agenda. i would now like to turn over to the sender for his opening remarks. >> thank you very much, it is good to be working with you and have the ambassador here. today's global economy seems to move at 1,000,000 mph. clinging to yesterday's outdated trade policy is a loser for middle_class american workers counting on political leadership to create more high skilled high wage jobs. trade agreements need to bulldoze the trade barriers and open new markets to exports made by the american middle class. the things we grow or raise, build or forage. done right, this can lead to better paychecks for middle_class americans. this will take our economic

recovery from a what __ from a walk to a sprint. american work is to design and build products can get into the winner's circle when the goods they make are exported. the golden trade agreements are to take the fruits of american labor and ship them to markets around the world. that said, it is easy to understand why many american workers are frustrated when they have not seen a meaningful pay raise. in decades or worse, they have lost their jobs and fallen out of the middle class. when discourage americans argue they've been hurt by trade, those voices must not be ignored. those voices have to be heard.

those who take on a trade agenda in a hyper global economy need to make the case that will work for the middle class. i'm raising the issue especially because the president said in the state of the union address __ passed trade deals have not always lives up to the hype. i am looking forward to the ambassador and how he will address that. it's also important to hear what safeguards will be in place to ensure that any workers impacted by trade have access to returning, health coverage, and other forms of support to connect them to new opportunities. i will wrap up by mensching three key issues. there must be tough trade law enforcement. there has never been a greater need for americans to back our

workers by enforcing our trade laws and agreements. in the face of unfair schemes from foreign countries, trade enforcement is essential. just ask any of the hundreds of workers who work in my stay in solar panel manufacturing. when the chinese ran around the laws and threaten our solar panel industry, the company thought back in one. americans have to keep at it because china and other governments will not stop trying to get around trade laws soon. with 21st century trade agreements, enforcement also has to hold foreign governments accountable for commitment to uphold labor rights and environmental protection. those are essential elements of

a trade agreement and cannot be ignored or pushed to the side. the internet is changing trade in the 21st century, enabling more efficient ways to exchange goods and services internationally. three decades ago, an entrepreneur in atomic mount vernon, oregon, did not have the internet as a tool to access global markets. today, the entrepreneur does. the nation's trade policy must take advantage of economic areas where there is clearly advantage to usa. that means promoting a free and open internet. keep open what is, in my view, the shipping lane of the 21st century. the last point is transparency.

the american people have made it clear that they're not going to accept secretly written agreements that do not see the light of day until the very last minute. that was too often the way things worked in the past. it is not good enough anymore. nor is it enough to respond to the important questions with the same in adequate refrain, that somehow, someway people will benefit from trade deals. the american people have a right to know about the safe negotiations before they wrap up. our trade agreements are stronger when the american people are part of the debate. furthermore, transparency is also critical for trade promotion authority. once is ready, that bill must be available to the public. there has to be a fair and open process for its review and consideration. chairman hatch and i have been discussing these and other issues. finally, whatever member of the

committee feels in respect to trade, let us have a serious debate and work together on a bipartisan basis to find as much agreement as possible. my focus will be finding new opportunities to sell red, white, and blue american goods across the world. chairman hatch, thank you for the opportunity this morning to discuss these important issues. we are glad that the ambassadors here. >> thank you. we appreciate your work in this area. we are hopeful to continue to work in a bipartisan way to do this important work. we're so happy to have you here, mr. ambassador. i don't think you need an introduction. we are very pleased to see you working in this area. we believe you are one of the best people we have had in this area.

we want to make sure that we get this work done. you come here with all the credentials, and an awful lot of experience and is a menstruation. we look forward to working with you and we will turn it over. >> thank you very much for this opportunity to talk about the presidents traded trade agenda. our trade agenda is committed to strengthening the middle class. at usdr, we are advancing those goals by knocking down barriers to american exports. as we work to __ [indiscernible] >> let's have order.

remove this person. >> you are not going to protect our workers from poor working conditions. the american people are against tpp. >> no tpp. >> people need a democracy. >> no tpp! no tpp! no tpp! no tpp! >> let's take them out. the committee will be in order. comments from the audience are out of order.

if there is any further corruption, we __ interruption, we will recess. i understand that people have strong opinions on what we're discussing today. the first amendment allows you to discuss your views, but we need civil discussion in the context of this hearing. for people who are protesting, i have seen you respect others. we would appreciate having the signs removed as well. we will not put up with it and if you have the resources committee, we will. let's have no more that. i asked our capitol hill police to make sure that we do not have any more of this activity.

[indiscernible] >> you are not representing your people properly. take him out. >> it's a fraud. taking the american jobs. >> okay, mr. ambassador. if any signs go up again, we will throw you out too. let's stop the cheap politics. >> as we were to open markets around the world, enforcing our trade right so that farmers, ranchers, and businesses get the full benefit of economic opportunities that the american people have negotiated. consider together, these

efforts will contribute greatly to our economic impact. during the most recent year on record, 2013, u. s. exports reached a record high of $2.3 trillion and scored a record_breaking number of jobs. at a time when too many workers have not seen their paychecks grow, these jobs typically pay over 18% more than typical jobs. over the past year, i've traveled around the country and heard the stories behind the statistics. i've talked to small business owners, farmers, and branches, manufacturers and service providers, and many others. across our country is for the same resounding message __ confidence that is a long a playing field, we can win.

by tapping into foreign business markets, we can increase our payrolls. this is all the more incredible to consider that the united states is an open economy. and other countries have not played by the rules. this will unlock opportunity, and raise labor and environmental standards across the board. if we sit on the sidelines, we will be in a race to the bottom, not a race to the top. as a president said last week, we should be the people to lead. the contours of a final agreement are coming into focus. we have made important progress in market access negotiations and in addressing many 21st

century issues like digital property, competition with state owned enterprises, and labor and environmental concerns. all 12 countries have reaffirmed their commitment. another promising area is ttip. the united states and europe are moving forward with ttip negotiations. in november, president obama and eu leaders agreed to work on moving forward. a deal that would cover roughly $3.1 million of trade. this will be a critical year for trade. we look forward to continuing

our efforts to engage the public, stakeholders, and members of congress in a robust discussion on the market and opportunities. how we're leveling the playing field for american workers. how we're ensuring that the government will be able to regulate in public engines, and give americans security abroad. how do we move ahead? we are committed to providing maximum transparency. we look forward to working with committee and others in congress to determine the best way to achieve that goal. mr. chairman, there's no other area policy that reflects closer coordination between the executive and congress then trade policy. for strength in that, we asked congress to pass bipartisan trade support.

the previous tpa legislation was passed over one decade ago. an updated bill is needed to address the rays of the digital economy, and express the latest news on the environment, labor, and access to medicine. this also provides a timeline for congress and also the american people. tpa is congress's best tool to make sure there's ample time on u. s. trade. we also look forward to working with congress to renew a number of other programs, including trade adjustment assistance, preferences takes pride __ that

expired in 2013. we can only achieve this with strong bipartisan support from congress. once again, thank you for the opportunity to testify. >> thank you, mr. ambassador. last year, i express my profound disappointment that you refuse to bring a wto case to india for its continuing efforts to undermine american intellectual property rights. i've long feared that if we did not ask, more problems would emerge. lesson two weeks ago, and in the office refused to release a patent on a drug that treats hepatitis c.

would you stressed to us today your plan to take meaningful action against india's breaches of our companies intellectual rights? >> we have been concerned about the deterioration of this in india. we have engaged with the new government since they came into office in may of last year about our concerns. we held the first trade policy form in many years in november. i just returned from india at yesterday. we have laid out a work program with the government of india to address these and other outstanding issues. recently, the government of india published a draft intellectual property rights proposal __ policy proposal that is now open for public comment. we're in the process of providing comment on that draft

proposal. we are committed to continue to engage with them to_areas of work that needs to be done in copyright, trade secret, and patents. i believe we have a good dialogue going on with the new government on this issue and we are committed to working to achieve concrete progress. >> china's leadership continues to play a greater role in chinese economy. yet, china uses laws of industrial policy. this is increasingly pronounced in china's anti_monopoly law. how will we be sure that they administrate their law in a nondiscriminatory manner? >> this has been an area of interest of ours. in a recent conference and we held a china, in december, this was one of the issues on the agenda.

we have made some progress in moving ahead in the application of anti_monopoly law that we think should be applied to deal with issues of competition, not issues of industrial policy. we are engaged with them to work to encourage them to apply the law as it is intended. >> canada has created a heightened standard for patentability __ or for patent utility. patents are a serious tone for our u. s. iinnovators. it also is inconsistent with canada's obligations with the __

wwhat are you doing to make sure that its patent standards are consistent with international obligations? >> we have raises concern directly and repeatedly with canadian authorities. the issue is now being litigated. i believe authorities are looking to see how proceeds as we continue to dialogue with them. >> thank you. in remarks last june, you identified a problem. some countries require the u. s. to set up data centers in order to be included in our markets. >> this is a key area in our

tpp negotiations. whereas, the ranking member mentioned, tthe digital economy is playing an increasingly more important role. in order for our small businesses to be based here and sell abroad, but also to ensure that they're not localization requirements that would require the construction of redundant infrastructure, making companies to build infrastructure in each country wedding want to service. we are making progress in this area and we hope it will bring a new standard for trade rules in the digital economy. >> i'm going to be strong on enforcing the five_minute rule so that everyone can have an opportunity. senator. >> the president said in his state of the union speech that passed trade agreements have not always lived up to the hype.

my sense is what middle_class families last is what will be different this time? i think it would be helpful if you could spell that out. >> thank you, senator. i think the president has made clear that as we pursue a new trade policy, we need to learn from the experience of the past. that is certainly what we are doing through tpp and the rest of our agenda. for example, when he was running for present __ present, __ president, he said that we should re_negotiate nafta. there will be strong labor and environmental protections in the core of the tpp, and they

will be fully enforceable. that is important. it is part of our effort to level the playing field. it creates new disciplines on the issues that are affecting real workers, and real production right now __ like state owned enterprises. right now, in other countries, people compete with us on an unlevel playing field. as you mentioned, the digital economy __ uupdating our trade agenda to reflect changes in the digital economy. in all these areas, we are trying to make sure, and use all the tools disposable, to drive more production and manufacturing in the united states. >> let's talk about transparency next. i think this is another area

where the public looks to the internet and says, we can find out a lot of information that you could not have like when the trade deals were being discussed in the 1990's. there has been a concern about transparency in the transpacific partnership discussion. the concern here is that the president would sign a tpp deal that would be protected by fasttrack and then you would have american middle_class families say that they do not know what is in it. we have discussed this before the deal would be helpful if you could address the question of whether you think the president will sign a transpacific deal before the agreement is made public for the american people to see. >> certainly in the past, the practice has been 14 __ for it to be public. that is the expectation here. we are beginning that consultation process with that expectation in mind. >> good.

on the issue, again, looking at some sector specific question, there is a lot of concern around dairy. this is a very important issue in the pacific northwest. we have both defense of an offense of interest in dairy. we may be willing to open our markets to goods from australia and new zealand, but only if to panic china's markets are more open to rj products. how will you ensure that on balance, this is a better deal than what we have now? >> weather is dairy or other agricultural commodities, and we want to make sure that tpp creates additional opportunity for them. that includes both market access __ access to markets abroad like japan, china, malaysia.

also dealing with issues like sanitary standards and making sure that other countries are applying standards consistent with science. it also goes back to an issue mentioned earlier of geographic specifications. making sure that we can sell our products from the united states and have its products nnames respected. >> one last question, if i may. to address what the present them __ president touched on a respected china. with which country in the asia_pacific area does china already have a trade agreement, and how specifically with those disadvantaged the american middle class? >> my understanding is that china has negotiating 14 fta's. one with 10 countries in total.

right now, they are engaged in another negotiation with 16 countries __ spanning from india to japan. what is important about this is __ these are the fastest growing markets in the world. right now, there are about 570 million consumers in asia. that number is expected to grow over the next 10 years. the question is who will serve that market? wwill it be made in america, grown in america products, or will they be products from china or others? and what will the rules of the road be? things we are doing are raising environmental and labor standards, putting disciplines on state owned enterprises, bringing in the digital economy.

those kinds of disciplines do not exist in other trade agreements. that is why it is so important for us to be the one to engage and lead in achieving a fair playing field. >> it sounds like china has strong robust policy. >> i like to thank you for the number of times you taken my telephone calls and given me updates on negotiations that we're talking about here. having the opportunity to get updates is very important. also, i think you talk to the present them more frequently than i do on trade. i know that the president is very much a believer in trade, and once trade promotion authority.

i know he has mentioned that in at least the last tuesday of the union addresses, to the business roundtable, to the export council. i hope you would tell him that if we are to get this passed, he has to work the telephones one_on_one with some senators to get us to vote threshold. my first question is a little along the lines with what you discussed __ when you're at the iowa state fair with me last august, you stated that you would know a good deal for agriculture when you thought. that was in regard to tpp. my question to you is very simple, how close to think we are to seeing a good deal for agriculture with tpp? more specifically, related support, how is it negotiations with japan going? >> we're making good progress in his market access areas.

including on agriculture and pork. we're not done yet. we still have work to do with japan and other countries. we are working very closely with our stakeholders in this area. the pork producers and others to ensure that the package we come up with addresses concerns and creates real value for american farmers. we're not done yet, by feel confident that we're making good progress. we hope to close out a positive package soon. >> just to emphasize something from history, ford overall agreement, whether manufacturing service or agriculture, it seems to be at least from the part of the united states senate, a good agriculture agreement seems to be the locomotive of what brings along everything else.

over the last year, we have seen china and european union to dragged their feet and approval of certain biotechnology cases. in some cases, market to struggle has resulted from the lack of approvals. i know you have been working hard on these issues, what else can we do in order to facilitate reviews on science_based technology? >> that is very much our perspective on this __ to encourage other countries to engage in disapproval based on science. let me take the two examples you gave separately. with regard to china, in the run_up to december, they approve three biotech advents on the eve of the jcpt. we have an agreement now to

work on the improvement of their overall process for biotech approvals. not just the particular event, but how they can bring the processes to conformity with international standards. we were disappointed over the course of 2014, the eu did not approve any biotech events. they backlogged biotech events. >> i have had a number of u. s. companies visit with me over the need to address currency manipulation in tbp. has the issue been raised in negotiations? >> this is at the top of importance for the administration.

we have been encouraging countries to move towards market_driven exchange rates. it is something that i am consulting on an engaging with others on. >> is your answer that it is being negotiated with individual companies __ countries from the president in __ and your interest? that is not being done through tpp negotiations? >> at this point, secretary liu, who has the lead on this, has been having conversations. >> but not through tpp? >> senator schumer. >> thank you.

ambassador, i think you know what i will say but i'll keep saying it until the menstruation executes me. i appreciate the value of our engagement through tpp. however, i am skeptical about supporting another trade deal based on the results of our existing agreements. for me, the number one issue facing america is that the middle class is shrinking. people can say that these trade agreements grow gdp, they help grow corporate profit. if they cannot show that they will increase middle_class incomes, i have some real problems. even further, i'm very skeptical about enforcement in these deals. it seems to me that we find these deals, we go right to the letter of wto. other countries say take us to court.. we lose.

it took years for wto to charge on china, and they captured the goal __ the globe in that time. india regularly weighs patent rights on pharmaceuticals. we seem to shrug our shoulders and the enforcement mechanism is powerless. i'm proposing combating intellectual_property theft by countries like chinaand streamline. i hope you will work with me on some of these ideas. if you have any hope of gaining support for this agenda from any of us on the side of the aisle, not all, the administration needs to prove to us and to the world that we will start fighting back. we need concrete, predictable,

and unilaterally enforceable mechanisms in place to show the world that we will protect our workers and our economy. let's start with currency __ bipartisan support has showed we want currency language. it also deals with countries not part of the tpp, like china. i know you can't have that in the agreement, but we can have two things go alongside one another. i for one, do not want to go forward with another trade agreement if we will not finally addressed this issue. with all due respect, secretary lou is great, but the menstruation have not done much here. there never called china a currency manipulator. japan and other countries that

are part of tpp distort their currency exchange rates to push up the trade surpluses. i'm disappointed to hear your response that that will not be part of the tpp negotiations. it has very real consequences for jobs in the middle class. a study by the peterson institute of economics found that foreign currency manipulation of cost america between one and 5 million jobs. according to the economic policy institute, it will lower the deficit, and add between 2.3 and 5.8 new jobs. i have a long been an advocate here. in 2003, i think i was alone when i talked about this. now people have come around and said currency manipulation is real. we still do not do anything about it.

administration after menstruation, unfortunately yours, as well as bush, has taken the position that the issue can be dealt with in country to country negotiations. not for the senator. we have had enough country to country negotiations for over a decade in both democratic and republican administrations. i want to make it clear __ i cannot support tcp agreement if we do not have the same time enact new statutory laws that define and enforce against currency manipulation. i will not support moving this trade agreement forward if we do not protect the middle class and american jobs. you would not go to the game of baseball where you team only gets to strikes at bat and the other team four.

>> your time is up. >> i'm finished. >> that's a miracle. >> all things come to those who wait. >> i'm proud of you. mr. bastard, you can comment on senator schumer's comments. >> thank you, senator. we very much look forward to working with you on this. i will say the following __ this demonstration is taken enforcement seriously. we brought 18 cases before the wto. we have want everything oks that has been brought to conclusion. we're continuing to work on additional cases where we find there is a problem to be had and where we can make a case. i look forward to working with you.

we set up the inter_agency trade enforcement center. it has allowed us to bring more complex and sophisticated cases. we look forward to working with you on the types of enforcement actions they can take place going forward. we agree with you completely that there is a level playing field and that we do everything we can under our laws to enforce our trade rights. >> thank you, mr. ambassador. i would like to thank you for your outreach on the tpp negotiations and tpa. i happen to think that others followed your good example as far as letting congress know about what is going on, seeking input, we could be a lot more productive and working together.

i do not share the ambivalence that the senator from new york has about the benefits of these trade agreements when you consider the fact that 80% of the purchasing power in the world lies outside of our shores. selling are manufactured goods and things that we grow and produce in america to those markets abroad seems like an unequivocal good for the american middle class and for our economy. i want to ask two questions. one has to do with something outside of your immediate purview. but is something i want to make sure you are aware of. the other does fall squarely in your purview. as you know, there has been a prolonged labor dispute on the west coast that has resulted in a lot of our exports, particularly our beef, pork, and poultry to asia to sit rotting on the docks at the port of oakland and other locations. u. s. exports __ over 200,000

metric tons of beef, pork, and poultry per month to asian markets. in 2014, it was roughly $1.8 billion that cleared western ports. a federal mediator has gone to try and negotiate, but even if that dispute in the port of oakland was concluded tomorrow, it would take 30 to 45 days of clearing the backlog. i like to hear from you as to whether you know if the administration is resolving this dispute __ and consider it a priority? >> the parties in a dispute have asked for federal mediation. that mediation is now happening and we hope it will be successful. >> i appreciate that. i hope that you carry that message back that this is a

matter of grave concern to some members of congress, and presumably all who represent constituents who are selling poultry, pork, and beef to asian markets, and who recognize the important impact that that has on our economy. conversely, the negative impact that it has if it starts rotting in a report on the west coast. the second issue has to do with the importance of protecting intellectual property for biological medicines in tpp. as you know, the founders of our great country thought it was so important to protect our intellectual property in terms of advancing science in the copyright clause of our constitution, yet aa number of the countries in the negotiation offer the role as far as copyright.

i would like to ask you on the issue of commitment particularly to the issue of biological medicine to make sure that data protection is included in the transpacific partnership negotiations. >> sender, leah 40 million americans whose jobs are on it intensive industries. certainly a big part of tpp is promoting strong intellectual property rights, as well as access to medicine that is in line with the bipartisan consensus that has emerged over the last few years. there are 12 countries, five have zero years, we have 12 years. this is one of the most difficult outstanding issues in negotiation.

we are continuing to make the case with our trade partners about how data protection can lead to greater innovation around the region. greater investment in this area. how to achieve access consistent to achieving strong and actual property rights. >> mr. ambassador, i appreciate your good work and look forward to continue to work with you. >> i will announce that the order the next sentence. >> i would like to praise you for your consultation with us and the open way in which we been able to work together and share challenges that we had together. i very much appreciate the matter in which you have involved is in the process. as chairman hatch pointed out, we have a challenge. that is that tpp is so far along the way __ normally we

would have tpa and acted, voice our objection, and you would come back to us with consultation on trade objectives, and we would have had a chance to adjust our expectations along the way. tpp is so far along the way that that becomes somewhat awkward as to whether tpa would work in the way it is intended to work with congressional input. i mentioned that because you know my number one concern. it is in tpp that tpa has very strong negotiating objectives as it relates to good governance, corruption issues. we're dealing with countries that are challenging tpa. in brunei, where there are significant lgb t concerns. countries where the record on

labor is very suspect. my priority from the beginning __ i think i've been very open about it __ is our trade objectives be very strong with good governance because of the tpb negotiations. yes, and that we continue to have a level playing field on environment and labor conditions, but also on good governance and corruption. and as my fellow senator said, currency concern. let me remind you, it was u. s. leadership in trade that help change the apartheid government of south africa. it was u. s. leadership that

spoke to the soviet union and brought about change. it is critically important that we see change in vietnam, brunei, and other countries. and that we use this opportunity to achieve those objectives. i will be advocating very carefully that not just what we do in tpa, because we're so far down the line in tpp, but a fair process as it relates to human rights and fair governance. tpa would you with more than just tpp. it would be what ttip. as you pointed out. there is concern that our european partners are sympathetic to bds legislation.

i'm wondering in those negotiations if we had been raising the issues and if our partners would be against our overall trade objectives and if we are using ttip against such legislation. >> thank you. tpp it does in fact have strong government and anticorruption provisions. one of the innovations of tpp is to make that core part of the agreement. it really goes throughout the whole agreement in regard to transparency, regulatory transparency, and across the board, strong enforcement mechanisms. we agree with you on the importance of that. tpp has also given us the opportunity to engage with countries like vietnam, malaysia, and brunei on these sorts of issues that you mention.

on labor writes, we are in deep consultation with these countries and what it would be like to bring their labor conformity to international standards. not just unchanging laws, but capacity building and what kind of practice is necessary to really have changes on the ground. it is only because of tdp that we had the opportunity to have the kind of dialoguewith vietnam, malaysia, and brunei. even on the human rights issue with brunei, we are working closely with the state department, tpp allows us to engage with them and their practices. i feel good that through tpp we will be able to make progress in all those areas in tpp will set a new milestone as far as good governance. on the european issue, i'm not

so familiar with that particular area of legislation. we are happy to follow up with you and look up __ look into it. >> thank you, ambassador. i was with senator froman two years ago and watched him hold someone accountable for labor rights as a participatory requirement in the united states. i've heard this man look out for exactly what you are talking about. and this has the strongest anticorruption language. it has worked in millennial challenge. you do a terrific job. i thank you for the job you're doing. i have a couple questions for you.

we have talked a lot about poultry. i traveled to south africa a year ago and industry representatives __ i think it is davies __ we met in johannesburg. yesterday, he said there's in agreement on the table on poultry. is that a misleading quote were accurate? >> i saw minister davies a few days ago in switzerland. he handed me a letter from the south african poultry association for the u. s. poultry association. we have not yet heard back from our poultry association to see what the reaction is. we have made it clear to south africa that resolving issues on poultry will be crucial in moving ahead. >> i appreciate that. that is very important to my state of georgia. senator coons and i are working on a joint letter reinforcing

our position that you use the opportunity and leverage that it brings to the south africans be sure that we break through the impasse on poultry. regarding enforcement that senator schumer has talked about, i don't think anyone has mentioned it yet but you are working with india, and we particularly ran with that. content is no 55 cents now. they are producing at twice the work price. what can be done with china to keep them from manipulating cotton prices? >> it is an important point, is that the whole pattern of agricultural