I think that trade is an important issue. Of course, we are 5 percent of the world's population; we have to trade with the other 95 percent. And we need to have smart, fair trade deals.
I've heard [Bernie] Sanders comments, and it's really caused me to wonder who's left in the progressive wing of the Democratic Party. Under his definition, [Barack] Obama is not progressive because he took donations from Wall Street; [Joe] Biden is not progressive because she supported Keystone; [Jeanne] Shaheen is not progressive because she supports the trade pact. Even the late, great Paul Wellstone would not fit this definition because he voted for DOMA.
We have to resist, protectionism, other kinds of barriers to market access and to trade.
When I was in the Senate, I had a number of trade deals that came before me, and I held them all to the same test. Will they create jobs in America? Will they raise incomes in America? And are they good for our national security? Some of them I voted for.
We spend trillions of dollars to travel around the world, but it's in everybody's interest that we have a better framework, and not just for the United States but for the entire world, in which to operate and trade.
The biggest one [trade deal], a multinational one known as CAFTA, I voted against. And because I hold the same standards as I look at all of these trade deals.
My dream is a hemispheric common market, with open trade and open borders, some time in the future with energy that is as green and sustainable as we can get it, powering growth and opportunity for every person in the hemisphere.
But let's not assume that trade is the only challenge we have in the economy. I think it is a part of it, and I've said what I'm going to do.
China is illegally dumping steel in the United States and Donald Trump is buying it to build his buildings, putting steelworkers and American steel plants out of business. That's something that I fought against as a senator and that I would have a trade prosecutor to make sure that we don't get taken advantage of by China on steel or anything else.
I'm going to have a special prosecutor. We're going to enforce the trade deals we have, and we're going to hold people accountable.
In America, we trade more energy with our neighbors than we trade with the rest of the world combined. And I do want us to have an electric grid, an energy system that crosses borders. I think that would be a great benefit to us.
I think it's a false trade-off to say quality time versus quantity - you have to have both.
As president, I will ramp up enforcement of trade rules by appointing a new chief trade prosecutor and tripling the number of enforcement officers. We will work with both parties to pass the biggest investment new good paying jobs since World War II.
Over the years, we have lost millions of decent paying jobs. These trade agreements have forced wages down in America so the average worker in America today is working longer hours for lower wages.
My dream is a hemispheric common market, with open trade and open borders.
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