WHEN: Thursday, May 17th, 12:00 pm
Registration begins at 11:45 am
WHERE: Lunch at Dresslerʼs Metropolitan
Directions attached
“Trade and Prosperity in the 50 States: The Case of North Carolina”
Bryan Riley, Senior Policy Analyst in Trade Policy
- The Heritage Foundation -
A new report shows that North Carolina's congressional delegation is increasingly voting against free-trade agreements. This is a
trend that the Heritage Foundation, which supports free trade, finds troublesome.
Did you know some 200,000 North Carolinians owe their jobs to direct foreign investment - 50,000 people manufacture goods
destined for foreign markets; 40,000 people work at the state's ports; 530,000 people work at places where foreign goods are sold.
Reports also show that 1,500 North Carolina jobs depend on exports to South Korea alone.
North Carolina has a long record of support for open markets, and recent trade agreements have benefited its citizens. Foreign
trade-exports and imports is responsible for more jobs in the state than the textile, apparel, and furniture industries combined.
Despite these facts, North Carolina's congressional delegation seems to be rejecting its free-trade heritage. (In 2011, all but one
member of the state's congressional delegation voted against the U.S.-South Korea Free Trade Agreement) Primarily, this is due
to the influence of the state's large textile and apparel industry seeking protection from lower-cost imports. Every Member of
Congress who is facing a vote on trade-related legislation should consider the impact of that legislation on every worker and
family in his state, not just on a limited sector. North Carolina can best represent the interests of its citizens by rejecting
protectionist policies and returning to its free-trade roots.
Bryan Riley is The Heritage Foundation's Jay Van Andel Senior Policy Analyst in Trade Policy. Working in Heritage's Center for
International Trade and Economics, Riley contributes to the influential Index of Economic Freedom, which the think tank publishes
annually in partnership with The Wall Street Journal.
TO REGISTER:
RSVP to
sarahharriespeeler@gmail.com Wednesday, May 16th at Noon.
To opt out of future email communications please
click here
