The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE, AMERICAN JOBS AND FOREIGN LOBBYISTS” mentioning the U.S. Dept of State was published in the Extensions of Remarks section on pages E1919 on Oct. 11, 1995.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE, AMERICAN JOBS AND FOREIGN LOBBYISTS
______
HON. LINDA SMITH
of washington
in the house of representatives
Wednesday, October 11, 1995
Mrs. SMITH of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to let the American people know how Government has really operated in Washington for far too long. For the past several months I have been working in a bipartisan manner with my colleagues in the House and Senate from Washington State, Oregon, and California to address a serious issue. American men and women in the longshoreman's trade are being displaced by foreign workers because our own State Department's rule interpretations strongly favor foreign workers despite Congress' efforts to protect American workers in a trade where half of their jobs have disappeared in the last decade alone.
It's not bad enough that our State Department is failing to protect American jobs but they have ignored Congress' charge to update their annual rule interpretation list for almost 2 years. So let's see, not only does our own State Department favor foreign workers but now they ignore Congress' instructions as well. But wait Mr. Speaker, it gets better!
Now I have discovered that after fourteen other Members of the House and Senate joined me in writing to Secretary Christopher about this problem a mid-level bureaucrat in the Transportation and Economic Section of the Department of State decided he would call foreign ship owners to let them know they too should be concerned about this issue. Yes. We have a State Department official calling foreign lobbyists as if he had been retained to be their personal agent. Whose State Department is this anyway?
But just when I think it could not get any worse I find out that the State Department has agreed to be lobbied by foreign vessel owners and operators so that they can continue to discriminate against American workers. Their concern? It is that the profit margins for foreign vessel owners and operators will be cut.
So let's review what has been going on in our State Department. First, State promulgates rules which discriminate against American workers in favor of foreigners. Second, State ignores the law and defies Congress' charge to produce annual reciprocity lists for almost 2 years. Third, a State Department official takes it upon himself to be the agent for foreign lobbyists by calling foreign ship owners and operators to protect what amounts to be corporate pork for foreigners doled out by our State Department. Last, as if notifying foreigners that their sweet deal may be in danger is not enough, the United States Department of State decides to meet with foreign lobbyists so that their concerns can be made a part of the official State Department evaluation.
While some have asked me which American worker needs to fear our State Department next the real question Americans must ask themselves is ``How much does it cost a foreign interest to have the Department of State act as your lobbyist?'' The obvious answer, the livelihoods of thousands of American men and women in the longshoreman's trade.
____________________
