U.S. Congressional Delegation Tours China to Create Support for Enhanced Trade Relations
FRANK SESNO, CNN ANCHOR: China's trade status is the focus of a three-day visit by U.S. officials that got underway today in Beijing. Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman is leading a congressional delegation. They're working to build support in Congress for granting China permanent normal trading relations in advance of its likely entry into the World Trade Organization. CNN Beijing bureau chief Rebecca MacKinnon has more on what may be at stake.</s>REBECCA MACKINNON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The Chinese can't get enough of these little yellow beans, consuming more than 18 million tons of soybeans a year in tofu and other foods: like cooking oil, and indirectly in animal feed. What can't be grown at home is imported, most of it from the United States. But the American Soybean Association says that will change if the U.S. Congress doesn't grant China the special trade status called "permanent normal trade relations."</s>PHILLIP LANEY, AMERICAN SOYBEAN ASSN.: If we don't give China permanent normal trade relations status, those benefits are going to go to our competitors, and if you come back a year from now, all of those soybeans in the background are going to be marked "Made in Argentina" or "Made in Brazil."</s>MACKINNON (on camera): Back in the United States Congress, opponents say China doesn't deserve permanent normal trade relations because Chinese workers don't have adequate rights, freedoms or working conditions. But U.S. companies argue that the best way to bring about change in China is to do more business here, not less. (voice-over): This factory makes building material for a U.S. company called Armstrong. This worker says American companies treat their workers much better than many Chinese companies. He says they have better pay, better benefits and better safety standards.</s>OLIVIA STEWART, ARMSTRONG: I think what we do is reflective of what all American companies do. People who haven't been here, it would be hard for them to judge unless they were here and saw what was going on.</s>MACKINNON: Four of the 435 members of the House of Representatives are in China now to see for themselves, but they're the only ones. Another congressional delegation was canceled earlier this month due to lack of interest. Rebecca MacKinnon, CNN, Shanghai, China.