Sherrod Brown's August Newsletter

Below are excerpts from Sherrod Brown's August Newlsetter.  To learn more go to his webiste at:  http://brown.senate.gov/

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Fair Trade For Our Future

Ohio has suffered greatly from wrong-headed trade policies that betray our middle class and abandon our communities. Pending trade deals with Colombia, South Korea, and Panama are a continuation of the failed trade model that began in 1993 with the North American Free Trade Agreement. While President Bush and his supporters in Congress are intent on forcing through more of the same trade pacts, many of us in the Senate are fighting for a new trade policy - a policy that works for Ohio families and businesses, a trade policy that invests in our communities and fosters new industry.

To help put our country on a new course for trade, I introduced forward-looking, pro-trade legislation this spring - the Trade Reform, Accountability, Development, and Employment (TRADE) Act. The TRADE Act would require Congress to review the effects, both positive and negative, of existing trade agreements and renegotiate those that are doing more harm than good. The bill would also clarify the basic trade principles that should guide U.S. trade negotiators in the areas of labor, intellectual property, environmental protection, and other variables crucial to fair competition in the global marketplace. When we change the process for writing trade deals, we can make trade deals work for more people.

I am gathering support in Congress and look forward to working with Democrats and Republicans in 2009 to replace our nation's outdated trade policy with one that truly supports Americans goals and values.

Food Safety

Recent salmonella and E. coli outbreaks in Ohio and across the nation have highlighted the serious shortcomings of our current food safety system. It's bad enough that many Ohioans are struggling to afford groceries, they should not also have to worry about the safety of the food on their dinner tables.

That is why I introduced legislation in July to give the federal government a power that most Americans would be surprised to learn it doesn't already have: the authority to issue a mandatory recall of contaminated food. This new authority would allow for swifter action to protect the public's health when the food supply is compromised. It is unacceptable that Nebraska Beef - the Omaha slaughterhouse responsible for making 21 Ohioans ill in June - took more than three weeks to voluntarily recall its tainted ground beef after being notified by the U.S. Department of Agriculture that its meat had tested positive for E. coli.

The safety of our food supply is too important to be left to voluntary self-policing by private industry. The Safe And Fair Enforcement and Recall for (SAFER) Meat, Poultry, and Food Act of 2008 would give federal regulators the authority they need to achieve our government's most important duty: to keep Americans safe.

An Energy Policy To Lower Gas Prices Now

In 2001, Ohio drivers paid $1.40 for a gallon of gas at the pump. Today, gas prices in many areas of the state top $4.00 a gallon. School districts, local governments, truckers, police departments, fire departments, and Ohio families are all feeling the sting of high gas prices.

Earlier this summer, members of Congress offered strategies to help bring down gas prices. Unfortunately, these efforts were blocked. Oil companies claim - and their supporters in Congress back them up - that drilling - anywhere, anytime - is the cure-all for our energy woes. Yet, even energy experts working for the White House admit that drilling today would not produce oil for many years.

More importantly, drilling today will do nothing to bring down gas prices this summer - or even this year.

To help communities and families in Ohio - and across the country - the President should tap into our nation's oil supply by opening the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. That will help bring down gas prices now.

Congress and the White House should also hold Wall Street accountable and go after oil speculators that game the system. According to a former top official at the Commodity Futures Exchange Commission, oil speculation accounts for up to 50 percent of the price of oil per barrel.

The federal government also must commit to accelerating the development of renewable and alternative energy sources. Alternative energy is not only the key to energy independence for our nation, it is an economic powerhouse that can revitalize Ohio's manufacturing sector.

Big Oil would like nothing better than for our nation to continue to rely on more and more drilling. It has helped Exxon and others earn unbelievable profits. But Congress must stand up for American families and stand up to Big Oil. When Congress returns to Washington in September, I will continue to work with my colleagues on an energy policy that acts in the best interest of our nation, not the oil companies.

Foreclosure Help On Its Way to Ohio Families

Ohio has been at the center of a national housing crisis that has seen record numbers of foreclosures. Foreclosures don't just hurt the families immediately involved, but also their neighbors and communities. Neighboring property values decline with every foreclosure, the local tax base is affected when families are forced to move out of the area, and jobs are jeopardized in related businesses like Ohio's Norwalk Furniture. This company was forced to temporarily suspend operations for the first time since the Great Depression.

From Cleveland to Columbus, Toledo to Marietta, too many Ohio families were sold unfair loans at predatory interest rates. And many communities need our help to try to combat the effects of predatory lending on their neighborhoods.

In July, Congress passed - and the President signed into law - landmark housing legislation. It will allocate $4 billion in community redevelopment funds to the hardest hit states, and will create a program to help families refinance their loans. The legislation will also provide authority for a temporary backstop for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which now own or guarantee almost half of the country's mortgages. This legislation is a necessary response to the troubles in the housing market. It's an important step in providing real help to Ohio homeowners.