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This 2009 annual report from the U.S. Office of the Trade Representative states,
"President Obama has charted a course for economic recovery that will restore growth and promote broadbased prosperity. It will emphasize improvements in the living standards of American families while reorienting our economy to meet today’s challenges – energy, the environment, and global competitiveness.
The President’s trade agenda will contribute to achieving these objectives. It will reflect our respect for entrepreneurship and market competition, our environment, opportunity for all, and the rights of workers. We seek to benefit Americans and the world by pursuing trade policies that embody these values. We particularly recognize the need to pay special attention to how our policies influence the well being of people struggling both at home and in the poorest regions of the world. Fundamentally, our trade policy needs a keen appreciation of its economic consequences for our workers, their families, and their communities, a fact recognized in the progress our Congress is making to upgrade our existing adjustment assistance programs for workers.
Eliminating barriers to trade in the face of serious turmoil in our economy and financial markets will be a challenge. In enacting the Economic Recovery Act, the Congress affirmed our commitment to comply with the rules that govern international commerce and reached agreement to improve our trade adjustment assistance programs. These acts recognize the importance of trade to our economy and our responsibilities to those who face the highest hurdles in adjusting to changing trade patterns."
