Senator Carper Highlights Priorities in President Biden’s 2024 Trade Agenda

Today at the Senate Finance Committee hearing “The President’s 2024 Trade Policy Agenda,” U.S. Senator Tom Carper (D-Del.), Chairman of the Senate Finance Subcommittee on International Trade, Customs, and Global Competitiveness, heard from U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai about the scope of international trade issues facing the United States and our trading partners. During the hearing, Senator Carper highlighted the Biden Administration’s work to strengthen supply chains around the world.

Senator Carper stressed the need to establish specific medical supply chain agreements, in line with his recommendations in the Medical Supply Chain Resiliency Act:  

“As you know, the pandemic highlighted the fragility of global supply chains and the importance of medical innovation for national security. […] Strong and diverse supply chains with our allies are vital to ensuring that medical supply chains are resilient in the future, and ensuring that Americans have access to the products that they need when they need them.”

Additionally, Senator Carper emphasized the importance of digital trade and engagement with a wide variety of stakeholders to develop the future of digital trade: 

“In February of this year, the American Civil Liberties Union, along with Freedom House and a number of other advocacy groups and academics, sent a letter expressing concern with the United States’ decision to withdraw from the key digital commitments at the World Trade Organization. That letter outlines the impact of digital trade across sectors and the importance of ensuring that United States has a seat at the table in order to help write the rules of the road, both for creators in small and medium sized businesses that must adapt to the changing digital landscape.”

A video of Senator Carper’s questions at today’s hearing can be found here.

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