Trading Away Our Security

After the public outcry over the Dubai ports deal, you'd think Republicans in Washington would think twice before proposing another trade deal that could threaten our national and economic security.

Think again.

Yesterday, Senator Mike DeWine voted for a free trade agreement with Oman which then passed the Republican-controlled Senate.

A troubling provision in the agreement permits corporations from Oman and subsidiaries based there to operate U.S. ports.

If the U.S. passes port security laws after the deal takes effect, those companies could sue the U.S. government to override the laws. Any suits would be heard before international tribunals, whose chief mission is to promote their trade priorities, not safeguard our homeland.

I spoke out against the Oman deal on Lou Dobbs Tonight on Wednesday along with Sen. Byron Dorgan of North Dakota.

Dorgan warned, "What could happen here is a circumstance where the United Arab Emirates simply buys a company in Oman, and all of a sudden they're managing America's docks and ports."

The Bush administration and its allies on Capitol Hill including my opponent, Sen. Mike DeWine, never met a free trade agreement they didn't like.

First they opened our borders to China, Mexico, and Central America, where sweatshops and non-existent labor laws undercut American workers. Now they want to hand over critical national infrastructure to nations, which could serve as a back door for terrorists.

Free trade advocates argue that these risks are unavoidable if we want to participate in a global economy. I strongly disagree.

I've introduced a bill in the U.S. House, the TRANSEA Act, which would mandate national security reviews of all trade agreements.

My legislation will help expand markets to U.S. goods without compromising our security.

This might seem like a commonsense measure, but the special interests that run Congress are against it.

It is time that we take control of our nation's trade policy. We've already lost enough U.S. jobs to faulty trade agreements, let's not lose our national security too.