Q:        What is Trade Promotion Authority (TPA)?

A:        The Constitution vests authority in Congress to regulate commerce with foreign nations.  And the President must take care that the laws are faithfully executed.  As anyone who pays any attention to Washington knows, it's not easy to get 535 lawmakers to agree even on what day of the week it is.  Imagine trying to find consensus for a multilateral trade pact with, say, a dozen Pacific Rim nations or scores of countries from the EU.  Recognizing the United States needs to speak with one voice of authority while negotiating agreements that open markets for U.S. goods, services and investment, the U.S. Congress has in the past approved a legislative tool called Trade Promotion Authority, or TPA.  It's used by Congress to better manage negotiations with potential trading partners.  It works.  When U.S. trade negotiators sit across the table with their counterparts from the European Union or Asia-Pacific economies, TPA gives our potential trade partners more confidence and the United States more credibility that a trade pact won't be fiddled with once it's presented to Congress for approval.  Global trade agreements have stalled since TPA expired in 2007.  Renewing TPA would help steer the U.S. economy back on the right track.  It'd be good for America's long-term prosperity.

Q:        Are you concerned the TPA gives away too much authority to the President?

A:        That's a reasonable question considering the overreach this administration has pursued throughout the last five years.  From the fatal gun-walking program at the Department of Justice to the political targeting at the IRS, the unlawful recess appointments the President has declared, the massive financial bail-outs and the unilateral changes to the Affordable Care Act decreed by the Department of Health and Human Services, the case can be made the Obama administration gets fuzzy on constitutional boundaries to pursue its agenda.  That's why the bipartisan TPA legislation I support requires strict transparency and reporting requirements, including consultations with Congress and beefed up congressional oversight during trade negotiations.  Three primary mandates in the Trade Priorities Act of 2014 include directing the administration to pursue specific goals outlined by Congress; establishing transparency and access to information to Congress and the public before, during and after negotiations; and, giving Congress the final say to approve trade agreements via an up-or-down vote.  These accountability provisions should apply regardless of which party holds the White House or the congressional majority.  In addition, it's always up to Congress in the end to decide whether or not to pass implementing legislation for any trade agreement negotiated.

Q:        How is the proposed TPA good for America?

A:        Renewing TPA is an important policy tool that would help create more opportunities for more Americans to get ahead.  Policymakers need to focus on ways to expand the economic pie so that there's more wealth to go around for everybody.  And the global economic pie offers incredible opportunities for American businesses, investors, farmers and entrepreneurs to grow their business, hire more workers, increase wages, sell more products and achieve more prosperity.  Today the United States is negotiating agreements with 11 Asia-Pacific nations (notably Japan and Vietnam), 28 members of the European Union, 22 additional countries for a trade in services agreement and the 159 members of the World Trade Organization.  Just consider the Trans-Pacific and EU trade pacts would open markets for nearly 1 billion consumers, reaching nearly two-thirds of global GDP.  Approving TPA would put the United States back in the driver's seat on these trade pacts.  The Asia-Pacific countries accounted for 40 percent of total U.S. goods exports in 2012.  That same year, the EU purchased nearly $460 billion in U.S. goods and services.  As Iowa's senior U.S. Senator, I appreciate the feedback that I receive from Iowans on issues that matter most to them.  Trade promotion authority is an issue that resonates strongly with grass roots groups that are opposed or in favor of renewing this measure.  Phones ring off the hook whenever TPA is under consideration on Capitol Hill.  This input strengthens congressional efforts to ensure trade promotion authority is used as intended with the proper checks and balances in place.  That's why TPA does not give the President unilateral authority to approve any negotiated trade pacts.  And yet it does show our trading partners that America means business.

Q:        What are the specific objectives mandated by Congress?

A:        I don't support giving the current or any President a blank slate to negotiate trade pacts.  The bipartisan TPA legislation spells out specific rules that U.S. trade negotiators must follow to qualify for an up-or-down vote once the trade pact reaches Capitol Hill.  These mandated objectives take into account the growing significance of the Internet and the trading of digital goods and services.  The bill would establish protections for intellectual property; strengthen enforceable rules for agricultural trade disputes; eliminate barriers to cross-border investment; establish protections for cross-border data flows; enhance dispute resolution processes; and, update labor and environmental standards.  TPA would help restore America's commitment to economic freedom and free enterprise.  Without it, our strategic interests in the international economy will wither and leave U.S. consumers, workers, job creators, farmers, ranchers, manufacturers, financial service providers, digital entrepreneurs and investors hanging in the wind.  Other countries will reach agreements and increase job-generating export opportunities while we sit on the sidelines.  From a series of Foreign Ambassador Tours I led throughout Iowa starting in 1986, I learned first-hand that economic diplomacy and old-fashioned hospitality foster immeasurable good will and plant seeds of opportunity.  It's time to renew TPA and cultivate opportunities with our trading partners.  It's time to let more U.S. workers find out that jobs in U.S. export industries pay on average 18 percent more.  It's time to embrace the rising tide of economic opportunity for all.

Friday, January 17, 2014

SEE:  Quad City Times, Jan. 16: 'Group: Oil industry takes fight against ethanol to Iowa' : The oil industry apparently is taking its fight against the Renewable Fuel Standard to what might seem an odd place: Iowa.  The Iowa Renewable Fuels Association is complaining that an oil industry trade group, the American Petroleum Institute, has launched automated telephone calls to Iowans, claiming renewable fuels are responsible for pushing up food prices and damaging car engines."

Response from Jeremy Funk, Communications Director, Americans United for Change: "You know Big Oil has more money than they know what to do with when they start conducting paid communications in Iowa trying to convince people who know the economic benefits of renewable fuels better than anyone that they're wrong. And what a surprise: the same oil shills who lie shamelessly about not taking any taxpayer subsidies are now lying about renewable fuels' impact on car engines and food prices.  Would NASCAR have driven over 5 million miles on ethanol if it damaged car engines in any way?  Of course not. And a chorus of leading ag academics have studied renewable fuels' impact on food prices at the grocery store extensively and concluded there simply isn't one.  Big Oil has gotten a little too ambitious this time with their greedy scheme to crush the Renewable Fuel Standard and eliminate their cheaper, cleaner competition.  They may have instead stirred up a hornet's nest of rural Americans who don't want their livelihoods and choices at the pump taken away to go out of their way to tell the EPA: Save the RFS."

FACT: Ethanol Has Almost No Impact on Food Prices

§  RFA: "A recent study commissioned by the International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development (ICTSD) examined the impacts of ethanol policies, including the RFS and now-defunct blender's tax credit, on world crop prices in the 2005-2010 timeframe. Using a partial equilibrium economic model, the study found corn prices in 2009/10 wouldn't have been any different at all with or without the RFS in place. Corn prices would have been just 3.3% lower, on average, in the entire five-year study period without the RFS and ethanol blender's tax credit, the study found. The effect of the RFS and other ethanol-related policies on other crops is even less...The Center for Agricultural and Rural Development (CARD), Food and Agriculture Policy Research Institute (FAPRI), University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Michigan State University, Oak Ridge National Laboratory and U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) are among the many other organizations that have similarly concluded the RFS has had only modest impacts on crop prices and no meaningful impact on retail-level food prices."

FACT:  Ethanol Does NOT Harm Your Gas Tank

§  U.S. Energy Department: The Energy Department conducted its own rigorous, thorough and peer-reviewed study of the impact of E15 fuel on current, conventional vehicle catalyst systems. The Energy Department study included an inspection of critical engine components, such as valves, and did not uncover unusual wear that would be expected to impact performance. Rather than using an aggressive test cycle intended to severely-stress valves, the Energy Department program was run using a cycle more closely resembling normal driving. The Energy Department testing program was run on standard gasoline, E10, E15, and E20. The Energy Department test program was comprised of 86 vehicles operated up to 120,000 miles each using an industry-standard EPA-defined test cycle (called the Standard Road Cycle). The resulting Energy Department data showed no statistically significant loss of vehicle performance (emissions, fuel economy, and maintenance issues) attributable to the use of E15 fuel compared to straight gasoline.

§  NASCAR: NASCAR announced November 12, 2013 that it surpassed more than five million competition miles across its three national series on Sunoco Green E15, a biofuel blended with 15 percent American Ethanol made from American-grown corn. The five million miles have been accumulated across practice, qualifying and racing laps dating to 2011 when the biofuel was introduced to the sport. ... In 2011 NASCAR entered into a groundbreaking partnership with Sunoco and the American Ethanol industry, launching its long-term biofuels program to reduce emissions of the fuel used across its three national series. The transition to the biofuel reduced on-track carbon emissions and teams report an increase in horsepower.

Tips to Help Ensure a Year of Growth
By: Marsha Friedman

I love the fresh-scrubbed feel of a new year. It's a great time to set goals for myself and my company, which always fires me up and inspires me to charge ahead.

I do more looking forward this time of year than looking back, but it is important to pause and take stock of where I've been. It helps me avoid making the same mistakes twice, and reminds me of things we did that worked well, so that we can try to repeat them.

To that end, here are my top four marketing must-do's in 2014.

• Define your marketing goals.

With clearly defined goals, you have something to aim for and a way to measure your progress (or lack thereof). Throughout the year, I can easily analyze the numbers and see whether I'm on track to meet my goals; if I'm not, I know I need to look for any problems that need to be addressed.

Some marketing goal ideas include how many followers or connections you'll gain on your social media networks, and how many new subscribers you'll sign up for newsletters. Sales may be a number you take into account, but it shouldn't be a goal for your marketing efforts. Sales are the result of a comprehensive strategy of which marketing is just one component.

• Develop and build your own marketing database

Building a database with email addresses and relevant information about former, current and prospective clients is absolutely essential. It allows you to communicate with them, reminding past customers of all you have to offer; strengthening the confidence of current customers; and encouraging prospective customers to move toward a sale.

If you're just getting started, create a database of all the people you know who might be interested in hearing from you: friends, family members, former business associates - everyone.  Your communications should not be sales pitches; rather, offer valuable, helpful information relevant to your field.

Keeps your database growing by offering content on your website that includes a "call to action" - an invitation for visitors to share their contact information in exchange for something that benefits them. That might include free reports available as downloads, how-to videos or subscriptions to your blog posts. If you're an author, you can provide a free chapter or two of your book.

• Maintain your marketing budget even when sales slump.

The first thing some people do when income declines is minimize expenses by whacking their marketing budget. Huge mistake! In fact, you need to pay more attention to marketing when sales drop off.

The new prospects you develop today, and the prospects you've been establishing relationships with, will be your paying customers tomorrow. If you allow that stream to dry up, you'll be in even more dire straits a few weeks or months from now.

• Use every marketing tool available to you.

Today we have more tools than ever for communicating the value of our service or product to the public. Many of them cost you nothing!

Forget yesterday's expensive direct mail letters. Today I can jump on Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn and the other social media networks and reach a potentially far larger audience for free.

Speaking engagements may be old school, but they're still effective; personal, face-to-face experiences create lasting impressions. Traditional media -- radio, newspapers and magazines, and TV - are also still powerful and carry the additional benefit of giving you credibility. That implied endorsement from journalists and talk show hosts sets you apart from the crowd.

Creating a great website accessible to millions of potential shoppers doesn't have to break the bank, and you can ramp up its value by using it to showcase your publicity.

Use everything at your disposal to share your message.

Following these simple but essential tips will help ensure you stay in front of your customers in the months ahead, which may just make 2014 your best year ever.

About Marsha Friedman: Marsha Friedman is a 23-year veteran of the public relations industry. She is the CEO of EMSI Public Relations (www.emsincorporated.com/smallbusiness), a national firm that provides PR strategy and publicity services to businesses, professional firms, entertainers and authors. Marsha is the author of Celebritize Yourself and she can also be heard weekly on her Blog Talk Radio Show, EMSI's PR Insider every Thursday at 3:00 PM EST. Follow her on Twitter: @marshafriedman.

Insurance Company EquiTrust to Open in Chicago

CHICAGO - Governor Pat Quinn today joined EquiTrust Life Insurance Company to announce that the company is opening new offices in Illinois that will create 200 jobs in the coming year and could employ hundreds more in years to come. According to company officials, EquiTrust will open their first Illinois office in Chicago, where they expect to add approximately 200 employees over the coming year. The announcement is part of Governor Quinn's agenda to create jobs and drive Illinois' economy forward.

EquiTrust also announced that Earvin Johnson is becoming a controlling shareholder of the company. Mr. Johnson is chairman and chief executive officer of Magic Johnson Enterprises.

"We are thrilled that EquiTrust has chosen to create jobs in Illinois," Governor Quinn said. "We are also excited to have Earvin Johnson become a corporate citizen of our state. His work in redeveloping urban communities has been widely recognized across the country, and this is a win-win for Illinois."

Mr. Johnson said the decision to come to Illinois was based on the state's large and dynamic economy and its pool of talented workers.

"EquiTrust's outstanding reputation and track record of helping people build for their future and plan for their retirement is a perfect example of doing well by doing good," Johnson said. "I am proud to be part of this great organization."

Magic Johnson Enterprises provides high-quality products and services that focus primarily on ethnically diverse and underserved urban communities through strategic alliances, investments, consulting and endorsements. It is comprises multiple business entities and partnerships that include ASPIRE, a new African-American television network; Magic Airport Holdings; Inner City Broadcasting Corporation; SodexoMagic, Edison Learning; Simply Healthcare; and the Los Angeles Dodgers.

"I welcome EquiTrust to Chicago and look forward to the hundreds of new employees who will be joining the most outstanding workforce in the world and calling Chicago home," Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel said. "Chicago is a thriving center for the insurance industry and EquiTrust will only add to this leadership in the future."

Mr. Johnson said that he has long been a fan of both Chicago and the state of Illinois and is looking forward to contributing to the area. He is excited to begin this chapter in his business career by investing in EquiTrust and helping it innovate and grow to serve its policyholders and constituents.

"This city and state contain a vibrant business community, with an outstanding work force pool," EquiTrust CEO Jeff Lange said. "The Governor and Illinois Department of Insurance have been extraordinarily welcoming and helpful in assisting us in our efforts and for that we are appreciative. We are pleased to be here. We believe it is an excellent place from which to continue implementing EquiTrust's growth strategy and find increasingly better ways to serve the company's various constituents."

Illinois is attracting new and expanding businesses because of its superior transportation network, highly educated work force, culture of entrepreneurship, access to capital and competitive cost structure.

"EquiTrust Life Insurance Company is a welcome addition to the life insurance and annuities market in Illinois," Illinois Department of Insurance Director Andrew Boron said. "It's a well-rated company with relatively new ownership, which should provide increased choices for consumers in Illinois' competitive insurance environment."

EquiTrust Life, which also has offices in Des Moines, Iowa, distributes fixed-rate and indexed annuities and life insurance through a national network of more than 14,500 independent agents. EquiTrust Life is rated BBB+ (Good) by Standard & Poor's and B++ (Good) by A.M. Best Company. Guggenheim Partners, LLC, a diversified financial services firm, announced that certain of its affiliates acquired the company from its previous parent, FBL Financial Group, Inc., in 2011.

Mr. Johnson also has roots in Chicago's educational landscape and in September of 2013 was joined by Governor Quinn to launch his new organization, "Friends of Magic." The movement aims to provide at-risk students with the tools they need to graduate high school and have a successful future. The announcement took place at the newly established North/South Lawndale Magic Johnson Bridgescape Academy, one of two Chicago-area blended-learning programs that provide students who have dropped out or are at risk of dropping out of school with a free alternative path to earn a high school diploma in an environment that fits their schedule, life circumstances and learning needs. Magic Johnson Bridgescape Academies are currently in six states with a total enrollment of 1,675.

Under Governor Quinn's leadership, the state of Illinois has identified, recruited and supported companies with the potential to bring jobs and economic growth to Illinois. The state has added 281,400 private sector jobs since January 2010, when job growth returned to Illinois following nearly two years of consecutive monthly declines.

For more information on why Illinois is the right place for business, visit Illinoisbiz.biz.

About Magic Johnson Enterprises

Magic Johnson Enterprises was formed in 1987. For additional information, visit www.magicjohnson.com.

About EquiTrust

For additional information, visit www.equitrust.com.

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