House passes China trade bill
237 members vote for, 197 vote against
By Tom Curry
MSNBC
WASHINGTON, May 24 ? The House of Representatives, in a historic vote Wednesday, passed legislation to normalize trade relations with China. Passage of the bill ends 20 years of debate over Beijing's trade relationship with the United States. In the face of aggressive resistance from organized labor and human rights activists, the bill's passage hands President Clinton a major foreign policy victory.
THE HOUSE approved the legislation on a 237-197 vote after more than five hours of emotional and often contentious debate.
Supporters of the bill only secured the needed votes in the 435-member House during the hours leading up to the vote, as the president and a slew of lobbyists left nothing to chance and barraged wavering Congress members ? in some cases as they walked between their offices and the Capitol Building to join the debate.
In the end, 164 Republicans and 73 Democrats voted for the bill and 57 Republicans, 138 Democrats and 2 independents voted against. The bill now moves to the Senate for consideration, where there is strong bipartisan support.
The House vote followed a last-ditch opposition attempt to scuttle the bill by introducing a motion conditioning China's trade status to Taiwan's security, a move clearly aimed at wavering conservative Republicans who had expressed deep concern by recent Beijing saber rattling. That motion was defeated after Rep. Tom DeLay, R-Texas, the majority whip, argued that the motion was a blatent political maneuver. He said the president already had the necessary authority to withdraw China's trade privileges if Taiwan is invaded. "This is a very clear poison pill by the opponents of free trade," DeLay said.
DEMOCRATIC ANXIETY
It had been widely expected that Democrats, who are much more dependent on organized labor for support, would vote against the Clinton Administration-sponsored bill. The legislation is widely considered one of the most significant of the year and the most important trade bill since the 1993 North American Trade Agreement, opening up the world's most populace country to American industry.
Video reactions
? Hastert praises the vote
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? Bonior reacts to loss
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? Clinton thanks the House
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In the final minutes of debate, David Bonior, D-Mich., the minority whip, argued that PNTR, like NAFTA, would only hurt the U.S. economy. "We should have learned the lessons of NAFTA," he said adding that that agreement led to the loss of "100,000 autoworkers jobs." Bonior, who led the House opposition to the bill, urged House members to vote against giving China, "a nation where injustice is law and brutality is order," permanent trade status.
But Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert, R-Ill. argued that if the bill is not passed, European companies, and not American, will be capitalizing on the huge Chinese market. "It is clear that passing this legislation is in the best interest of American economic security," he said.
OUTSTRETCHED HAND OR CLENCHED FIST
President Clinton appeared in the White House Rose Garden moments after the final vote to praise the House. "At this stage in China's development, we will have more positive influence with an outstretched hand than with a clenched fist," Clinton said.
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He noted that with 1.25 billion people, "China is the largest new market in the world." He said the outcome was particularly welcome after the enactment earlier this month of a bill to expand trade with Africa, Central America and the Caribbean.
Opponents of the China bill were led by a very vocal labor movement that argued granting permanent trade status to China would lead to some 800,000 lost American jobs. Unions had contended that U.S. companies, drawn by low-wage Chinese workers and a potential market of 1.25 billion people, would set up manufacturing plants in China ? not just to serve Chinese consumers ? but also as a cheap base of operations to serve customers all over the world. What's more they argue that by granting permanent trade relations ? as opposed to reviewing the relations every year as it is now done ? the United States will cede any leverage it has to influence Beijing on child labor laws, pollution, religious freedom and a slew of other concerns.
Supporters of the bill argued that a vote against permanent normal trade relations would fortify the conservative and heavy-handed elements of the Beijing government just when the country appears to be on the brink of some reform. They say America is giving up very little with a "yes" vote; that China will be the one that will significantly reduce tariffs, permit partial foreign ownership of key industries like telecommunication and banking, and ultimately liberalize its social and political policies as a result of the increased contact with the democratic world.
The trade bill will also end the annual reviews of Beijing?s trade status, permanently guaranteeing that Chinese goods be accorded the same low-tariff access to U.S. markets as products from nearly every other U.S.-trading partner.
Today's vote was not on whether China will join the 136-member World Trade Organization: other WTO members are likely to agree to its entry in the next few months. But the House voted on the market-opening agreement negotiated by the Clinton administration with Beijing last November.
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