[Press Conference: "U.S. Trade Policy Impact on Houston"]
[00:00:18]
LIKE, LET ME GET STARTED.AND I KNOW THAT THIS IS A FULL DAY, A LOT'S GOING ON TODAY.
LOOK, I'M, I'M JUST, UH, SO PLEASED AND EXCITED TO HAVE THE YES.
TRADE REPRESENTATIVE, AMBASSADOR TY, UH, WITH US, UH, TODAY.
UM, IN FACT, SHE'S, UH, IN THE CITY OF HOUSTON, AND SHE'S GONNA, SHE'LL BE HERE FOR 24 HOURS.
UM, BUT SHE IS HEADING TO THE RODEO THIS EVENING.
AND THEN, OF COURSE, UH, I CERTAINLY, UM, NO STRANGER, UH, TO CITY HALL.
AND THAT'S CONGRESSWOMAN, UH, SHEILA JACKSON, LEE OF THE 18TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT.
LIKE THE CONGRESSWOMAN HAS HAD THE FEDERAL HIGHWAY ADMINISTRATOR, UH, IN TOWN, UH, TODAY, AND NOW SHE'S HERE ALSO TO BE WITH US, UH, FOR THE US A REPRESENTATIVE.
UH, LOOK, IT'S MY HONOR TO WELCOME THE SA REPRESENTATIVE AMBASSADOR TY TO THE CITY OF HOUSTON AND TO OUR CITY HALL.
I THANK YOU ALL FOR JOINING US TODAY TO TALK ABOUT SOMETHING WE DO NOT OFTEN TALK ABOUT, WHICH IS THE IMPORTANT ROLE INTERNATIONAL TRADE PLAYS FOR OUR HOUSTON ECONOMY, AND HOW OUR REGION IS POSITIVELY IMPACTED BY OUR GLOBAL ENGAGEMENT.
UH, THIS IS A CITY BUILT ON INTERNATIONAL TRADE, AND IT CONTINUES TO PLAY A CRITICAL PART OF HOUSTON'S ECONOMY.
THE HOUSTON METROPOLITAN REGION LEADS THE UNITED STATES IN EXPORTS.
HOUSTON RANKS NUMBER ONE IN THE UNITED STATES, WITH EXPORTS VALUED AT MORE THAN $191 BILLION IN 2022.
THE PORT OF HOUSTON IS THE NUMBER ONE PORT IN THE UNITED STATES FOR FOREIGN TONNAGE, AND HAS BEEN FOR QUITE A FEW YEARS.
OVER 3000 COMPANIES IN HOUSTON ENGAGE IN GLOBAL TRADE.
AROUND 1700 COMPANIES IN HOUSTON HAVE FOREIGN OWNERSHIP.
THIS CREATES JOBS FOR HOUSTON RESIDENTS AND REPRESENTS MORE THAN $36 BILLION IN FOREIGN INVESTMENT INTO THE HOUSTON REGION.
ADDITIONALLY, HOUSTON IS ONE OF THE MOST INTERNATIONAL CITIES IN THE UNITED STATES, AND QUITE FRANKLY, THE WORLD.
WE HAVE MORE THAN 90 FOREIGN DIPLOMATIC AND TRADE MISSIONS IN HOUSTON.
WE ARE THE MOST DIVERSE CITY IN AMERICA, WHERE ONE IN FOUR HOUSTONIAN IS FOREIGN BORN, AND OUR CONSULATE SISTER CITIES AND CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE HELP DRIVE OUR GLOBAL ENGAGEMENT.
AND HOUSTON IS A RECOGNIZED LEADER AND A GLOBAL CITY LIKE FEW OTHERS, WHICH IS WHY IT WAS A PLEASURE AND IS A PLEASURE TO MEET TODAY WITH THE AMBASSADOR TY, THE US TRADE REPRESENTATIVE.
WE TALK, UH, VIA ZOOM, UH, IN 21, I BELIEVE, AND NOW WE ARE, UH, VISITING IN PERSON TODAY.
WE DISCUSS HOW HOUSTON IS IMPACTING US ECONOMY, AND HOW WE ARE WORKING TOGETHER TO INCREASE TRADE THROUGHOUT THE REGION, WHICH CREATES JOBS AND ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY FOR HOUSTON RESIDENTS.
WE TALKED ABOUT THE CRITICAL IMPORTANCE OF EQUITY IN OUR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND HOW POLICY NEEDS TO LIFT ALL OF OUR RESIDENTS.
WE ALSO TALKED ABOUT NOT JUST WELCOMING THE WORLD TO HOUSTON, BUT ABOUT BRINGING HOUSTON TO THE WORLD.
AND THEN LAST FALL, I LED A LARGE TRADE MISSION TO JAPAN, AND THIS YEAR WE'LL BE TRAVELING TO BRAZIL, WHICH THE, UH, THE US REPRESENTATIVE JUST CAME FROM.
UH, WE'LL BE HEADING IN, UH, TO BRAZIL IN APRIL TO FURTHER BUILD ECONOMIC IMPACTS AND LOCATION.
UH, THE TRADE REPRESENTATIVE HAS JUST RETURNED FROM, I AM PLANNING TO JOIN HOUSTON FIRST ON THIS VISIT TO MEXICO.
AGAIN, ONE OF HOUSTON'S MOST DIVERSE, IMPORTANT TRADING AND TOURISM PARTNERS, AND IN MAY AND SEVERAL COUNTRIES, UH, IN AFRICA LATER THIS YEAR TO CONTINUE FINDING NEW OPPORTUNITIES FOR HOUSTON COMPANIES AND NEW WAYS TO CREATE ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES FOR HOUSTON RESIDENTS.
AND AS YOU KNOW, I'M A FIRM BELIEVER IN OUR GLOBAL ENGAGEMENT.
UH, SO I WANT TO THANK THE US TRADE REPRESENTATIVE FOR BEING A GREAT PARTNER IN OUR WORK.
WE'VE HAD SOME VERY, UH, UH, PRODUCTIVE CONVERSATIONS.
I LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING VERY CLOSELY, UH, WITH THE AMBASSADOR TIME AS WE MOVE FORWARD.
NOW, LET ME CALL ON HER, UM, UH, TO, UM, HAVE HER REMARKS.
AND AGAIN, WELCOME TO THE CITY OF HOUSTON.
LOOK, GAVE HER A BELT BUCKLE, AND WE GONNA DRESS HER UP IN HER HAT AND SOME BOOTS.
AND SHE GONNA BE READY FOR THE NIGHT WITH CHRISTIAN
WELL, IT'S A, IT'S A DELIGHT TO BE HERE WITH YOU TODAY.
UM, UH, I DO NEED A BELT, UH, TO BE ABLE TO WEAR THE BELT BUCKLE IN THE RIGHT WAY.
SO, UM, I KNOW, UH, UH, THAT WILL BE AT LEAST BE ONE STOP AT THE RODEO THIS EVENING.
UM, UH, I WANNA THANK YOU, UH, MAYOR TURNER FOR YOUR, UM, HOSPITALITY.
THANK YOU, UH, YOUR GENEROSITY, UH, AND FOR,
[00:05:01]
UM, HOW MUCH I AM LEARNING FROM YOU.UM, ALSO, UH, NOT JUST IN OUR CONVERSATION, BUT, UM, FOLLOWING YOUR SCHEDULE.
UM, ON TOP OF BEING THE MAYOR, YOU HAVE A TRAVEL SCHEDULE THAT LOOKS, UM, PRETTY MUCH LIKE MINE,
UH, WHAT IS VERY CLEAR IS YOU COME OFF THE, THE RUNWAY AT, UH, HOUSTON INTERCONTINENTAL THAT, UH, UH, HOUSTON IS, UM, UH, NOT JUST A GREAT AMERICAN CITY, UH, BUT AN INTERNATIONAL GATEWAY.
UM, UH, I AM DELIGHTED TO BE HERE.
UM, A LOT OF MY JOB REQUIRES ME TO TRAVEL.
A LOT OF THAT TRAVEL IS INTERNATIONALLY TO CAPITALS AROUND THE WORLD, TO PLACES LIKE GENEVA AND BRUSSELS AND TOKYO AND BRASILIA TO MEET WITH INTERNATIONAL COUNTERPARTS, TO DO INTERNATIONAL TRADE NEGOTIATIONS.
UH, BUT EQUALLY IMPORTANT IN MY JOB IS LEAVING WASHINGTON AND MAKING SURE THAT I COME OUT TO, UH, THE DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE UNITED STATES, UH, TO MEET OUR WORKERS, OUR BUSINESSES, UH, OUR MAYORS, UM, OUR, UH, CONGRESS PEOPLE IN THEIR DISTRICTS, UH, WHERE, UH, THEIR COMMUNITIES ARE IS IMPORTANT BECAUSE IT'S IN THE TITLE OF MY JOB IN MY OFFICE, THE OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE.
WE ARE BRINGING THE US BACK TO USTR IF I AND MY TEAM DON'T PUSH OURSELVES OUT OF WASHINGTON AND COME AND GET TO KNOW YOU, WHERE YOU LIVE AND WORK.
I CAN'T PROPERLY REPRESENT THE INTERESTS OF THE UNITED STATES IN THE TRADE NEGOTIATIONS THAT I AM IN WHEN I'M OUTSIDE OF THE UNITED STATES.
AND, UM, PART OF THIS IS TO MAKE CLEAR THAT TRADE IS, UM, AN IMPORTANT PART OF THE ECONOMIC POLICY TOOL SET.
UM, WE ARE COMMITTED TO PRESIDENT BIDEN'S VISION FOR THE AMERICAN ECONOMY, WHICH IS TO GROW THIS ECONOMY FROM THE BOTTOM UP AND FROM THE MIDDLE OUT.
WHEN I COME TO A PLACE LIKE HOUSTON, IT IS SO CLEAR, THE VIBRANCE, THE DYNAMISM, THE DIVERSITY HERE.
WE WANT TO GROW HOUSTON MORE, AND WE WANT TO, UH, UH, DEMONSTRATE, UM, THE MODEL THAT HOUSTON CAN BE, UH, NOT JUST FOR THE REST OF AMERICA, BUT FOR, UM, THE REST OF THE WORLD.
UH, IN JUST THE LAST TWO YEARS, OUR ADMINISTRATION HAS CREATED, UH, 12.4 MILLION JOBS.
THAT'S MORE JOBS IN A TWO YEAR PERIOD THAN ANY PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATION HAS CREATED IN A FOUR YEAR PERIOD, UH, WITH THE KINDS OF INVESTMENTS THAT PRESIDENT BIDEN HAS UNLOCKED TO MAKE INTO AMERICA, AND AMERICANS LIKE THE BIPARTISAN INFRASTRUCTURE LAW, THE CHIPS AND SCIENCE ACT, THE INFLATION REDUCTION ACT, UH, WE ARE REVITALIZING, UH, THE COMPETITIVENESS OF AMERICA, UH, AND ENSURING THAT WE WILL BE AN ENGINE OF GROWTH FOR US AND FOR THE REST OF THE WORLD.
UH, THE BIPARTISAN INFRASTRUCTURE LAW IS A PARTICULARLY, UH, STRONG STORY.
UH, THERE'S $14 BILLION IN THE LAW COMING TO TEXAS, UH, AS A WHOLE.
UH, FOR, UH, THIS PART OF TEXAS, UH, IN PARTICULAR, UM, I'LL JUST SAY, UH, A COUPLE MORE WORDS, UH, WHICH IS, UM, I AM DELIGHTED TO PARTNER, UH, WITH MAYOR TURNER, UM, UH, ON HIS TRIP TO BRASILIA.
UM, WE'VE PROVIDED A DOWNLOAD IN TERMS OF, UH, UM, THE FINDINGS THAT, UH, WE'VE MADE FROM A VERY PRODUCTIVE TRIP, UH, LAST WEEK.
UH, AND TO ENSURE THAT, UM, THE MESSAGE THAT WE BRING TO OUR TRADING PARTNERS IS CONSISTENT AND IS EFFECTIVE, WHICH IS THAT THE DYNAMISM HERE, WE ARE COMMITTED TO, COMMITTED TO GROWING, AND THAT OUR VISION IS FOR A WORLD ECONOMY, UH, THAT, UM, UH, WORKS TOGETHER TO PROMOTE A RESILIENCE AS WE ALL CONTINUE OUR PATH TO RECOVERY, AND THAT WE ARE WORKING TOWARDS A MORE SUSTAINABLE, MORE INCLUSIVE VERSION OF OUR OWN ECONOMIES IN THE WORLD ECONOMY.
AND WE DO THAT BY WORKING TOGETHER.
I ALSO WANNA SAY, UH, BEFORE CLOSING, I'M REALLY DELIGHTED TO, UM, SEE, UH, CONGRESSWOMAN JACKSON LEE HERE.
WE SPENT SOME TIME TOGETHER IN, UH, SELMA.
I THINK IT WAS JUST TWO WEEKENDS AGO.
UM, I, I WORKED FOR THE CONGRESSMAN WHEN I WORKED FOR THE DEMOCRATIC CAUCUS IN THE US HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES BEFORE I CAME TO THIS JOB.
UH, SHE IS ONE OF THE MOST PIERCING INTELLECTS, ONE OF THE SMARTEST PEOPLE, UH, IN THE CONGRESS NOW, AND, UH, MAYBE EVER.
BUT, UH, I REALLY THINK IT'S AN HONOR ALSO TO SEE THE CONGRESSWOMAN HERE AT HOME.
I'M VERY GLAD TO BE HERE WITH ALL OF YOU.
LOOK, LET ME THANK THE AMBASSADOR, AND SHE MENTIONED, UH, THE CONGRESSWOMAN.
I SAY THAT ALL THE TIME, ONE OF THE MOST SMARTEST PEOPLE YOU KNOW, IN THE WORLD, YOU KNOW,
[00:10:01]
AND, UH, BUT LOOK, YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT SOMEONE WHO'S, UM, RELENTLESS, UH, AN ADVOCATE AND SOMEONE WHO HAS HELPED TO BRING BILLIONS OF DOLLARS REALLY TO THE CITY OF HOUSTON, APPRECIATE HER SUPPORT ON THE BIPARTISAN INFRASTRUCTURE BILL AND ON THE INFLATION REDUCTION ACT THAT YOU'RE BUILDING SO MANY OTHER MEASURES.SO, LET ME END UP, AND SHE'S HAD A BUSY DAY ALREADY 'CAUSE SHE'S BEEN TRAVELING WITH THE FEDERAL HIGHWAY ADMINISTRATOR AND, AND NOW HERE AT CITY HALL, UH, WITH THE US, UM, UM, REPRESENTATIVE FOR TRADE.
SO LET ME BRING YOU UP, CONGRESSWOMAN SHEILA JACKSON, LEE MAYOR, THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH.
I HAVE A SIMPLE TASK THIS AFTERNOON, IS JUST TO SAY THANK YOU, UH, AND TO ACKNOWLEDGE BOTH MAYOR TURNER AND AMBASSADOR TY.
WHAT A PLEASURE TO HAVE WORKED WITH HER OVER THE YEARS IN THE UNITED STATES CONGRESS.
AND I WOULD NOT HAVE WANTED AND THANKED THE MAYOR FOR INVITING ME.
I WOULD NOT HAVE WANTED TO HAVE HER IN RIGHT IN THE 18TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT WITHOUT WELCOMING YOU.
UM, I THINK THE IMPORTANT POINT, UH, FOR BOTH AMBASSADOR TY AND THE MAYOR IS THAT, UH, THIS ADMINISTRATION HAS SET AS AN INTERNATIONAL, UH, GOAL, UH, TO BE WELCOMING, TO BE EMBRACING AND TO BE EXPANSIVE.
UH, AND WE HAVE SEEN THE GROWTH OF INTERNATIONAL INVESTMENT AMBASSADOR TY OF COMPANIES, UH, THAT HAVE COME, UM, ALREADY, I WANT YOU TO KNOW, OUR SCHOOL DISTRICTS, UH, CHILDREN SPEAK OVER A HUNDRED LANGUAGES.
UH, WE HAVE THE LARGEST, UH, NUMBER OF CONSULATES, UH, AND I'LL SAY OF ANY CITY.
AND, UH, IT HAS BEEN, AND I'LL JUST CLAIM THAT, UH, RECORD.
UH, BUT IT HAS BEEN, UM, WHERE THE MAYOR HAS BEEN BOTH OPEN, BUT HE HAS BEEN OF SUBSTANCE.
AND WHEN HE TRAVELS INTERNATIONALLY, WHETHER IT IS, UH, CLIMATE CHANGE, OR WHETHER OR NOT IT IS THE IDEA OF HOUSTON BEING A WELCOMING TOWN FOR, UH, NEW BUSINESSES, UH, NEW, UM, CONSTITUENTS, UH, IT IS, UH, A VERY GOOD STATEMENT TO MAKE.
BUT I WANNA MAKE ANOTHER STATEMENT IN LIGHT OF THE PANDEMIC.
UH, AND, UH, LET ME, UH, ACKNOWLEDGE TO EVERYONE THAT AMBASSADOR TY'S LEADERSHIP HAS BEEN THROUGH SOME VERY DIFFICULT TIMES,
AND I THINK EVERYONE WAS CALLED TO THE TABLE AND THE TASKS, UH, AS WE WERE TRYING TO CONFRONT THAT.
UH, BUT TRADE REALLY, UH, CAN BE A LIFELINE.
AND IT CAN ALSO BE INSPIRATIONAL AMBASSADOR.
YOU KNOW, THAT WE ARE NOW LOOKING TO DO MORE WITH OUR OWN CHIPS MANUFACTURING, UH, WITH THE CHIPS BILL, BUT TO, UH, WORK WITH FRIENDLY COMPANIES, UH, AND COUNTRIES ON CHIPS.
UM, WE FOUND OUT HOW MUCH OF A LIFELINE TRADE IS, UH, DURING THE VACCINATION VACCINE RESEARCH, UH, DEVELOPING VACCINES, EITHER HAVING TO BUY VACCINES OR TESTING ON THE INTERNATIONAL MARKET, OR HAVING TO BUY VENTILATORS ON THE INTERNATIONAL MARKET.
YOU REMEMBER, YOU WERE, IT WASN'T YOUR TIME, IT WAS ANOTHER INDIVIDUAL'S TIME.
BUT BECAUSE YOU WEREN'T THERE, WE FOUND OUT HOW IMPORTANT, UH, TRADE IS.
SO HER JOB IS, UH, REALLY, UH, AN INTEGRAL PART OF THE PRESIDENT'S, UH, COMMITMENT, UH, TO SERVING THE UNITED STATES, UH, AND MAKING SURE THE DOORS OF OPPORTUNITY ARE OPEN, AND TRADE IS OPEN, AND GOODS ARE COMING INTO THE UNITED STATES, AND GOOD DEALS ARE BEING MADE AS A UNITED STATES TRADE REP, AS MUCH AS HER WORK IS DEALING WITH LIFESAVING, UH, NEEDS THAT THE UNITED STATES HAS TO INCLUDE, MAKING SURE THAT OUR TRADE PROTOCOLS, UH, IMPACT AND BENEFIT THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, AND AS WELL THAT WE EXPAND OUR TRADE OPPORTUNITIES.
SO THANK YOU FOR YOUR LEADERSHIP IN THIS.
UM, IT IS ALWAYS GOOD TO HAVE WORKED FOR CONGRESS BECAUSE WHEN YOU COME BEFORE CONGRESS AS A REPRESENTATIVE OF THE ADMINISTRATION, BUT YOU COME AND WE SAY, OH, WE KNOW AMBASSADOR TY, UH, AND, UM, OUR QUESTIONS ARE LESS HARSH, THEY'RE MORE WELCOMING.
UH, SO I'M DELIGHTED, UH, TO, UH, WELCOME HER MAYOR AND DELIGHTED THAT SHE WANTED TO COME TO HOUSTON BECAUSE OF THE RECORD THAT YOU'VE SET AND YOUR TEAM HAS SET.
AND YOU SHOULD BE CONGRATULATED.
UH, AND I WILL JUST, WE LIKE DOING THIS IN WASHINGTON, BREAKING NEWS, UH, THAT THE US TRADE REP IS GOING TO BE AT A HOUSTON LIVESTOCK AND RODEO SHOW,
NOW, I'M GONNA LEAVE THIS BY SAYING I KNOW THAT SHE'S ALSO GOT, AS THE ADMINISTRATOR OF THE FEDERAL TRADE ADMINIS, UH, UH, FEDERAL HIGHWAY HAS HOUSTON AS ITS NUMBER ONE IN HIS BRACKET.
IS THAT RIGHT? AND I'LL JUST HAVE TO SAY THAT THE TRADE REP MAY THINK ABOUT PUTTING HOUSTON AS NUMBER ONE IN HER
[00:15:01]
BRACKET.UH, BUT, UM, WE ARE DELIGHTED TO HAVE HER HERE, AND I LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH YOU AND CONTINUE TO WORK WITH THE MAYOR.
THANK, THANK YOU, UH, CONGRESSWOMAN, AND AGAIN, TO THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE AMBASSADOR TIME.
UH, THANK YOU FOR COMING TO THE CITY OF HOUSTON.
UH, WE CERTAINLY WANT HOUSTON TO BE YOUR GO-TO CITY.
I KNOW THAT THERE ARE MANY GREAT CITIES THROUGHOUT THE UNITED STATES, UH, BUT PLEASE LOOK TO US AS A FRIEND, AN ALLY, AND A SUPPORTER.
PLEASE EXTEND OUR BEST TO PRESIDENT BIDEN AND THE VICE PRESIDENT KAMALA HARRIS, BOTH OF YOU, AND HOW MUCH WE ARE APPRECIATIVE OF ALL OF THE RESOURCES THAT HAVE COME DOWN TO PLACES LIKE THE CITY OF HOUSTON.
AND I WILL TELL YOU, IT HAS AND CONTINUES TO MAKE A HUGE, HUGE DIFFERENCE.
AND THEN LASTLY, UH, WITH OUR RELATIONSHIP, IT'S OUR DESIRE, UH, TO BRING THE WORLD TO HOUSTON AND TO TAKE HOUSTON TO THE WORLD.
AND, UH, THAT'S, THAT'S THE THEME.
AND, UH, AND I CERTAINLY WANT TO THANK THE MAYOR'S OFFICE OF TRADE INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS.
I THINK WE, ONE OF THE FEW CITIES THAT HAVE AN ORGANIZATION REALLY FOCUSED ON TRADE AND INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS, AND IN LARGE PART IS BECAUSE, UM, OF THE DIVERSITY OF OUR CITY THAT LEADS TO THE INGREDIENTS OF OUR CITY.
SO LOOK, SHE JUST FLEW IN, CAME DIRECTLY HERE, AND, UM, WANNA GIVE HER TIME TO GET READY, UH, FOR THE MU AND WHAT YOU CALL 'EM, MUD AND MUD.
AND I JUST SAY THE LITTLE PEOPLE ON THE SHEEP, YOU KNOW,
UH, SO ANYWAY, UH, ANY, ANY QUESTIONS THERE FROM ANYONE? WE HAVE QUESTIONS, I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE WE WANNA MAKE THIS TOPIC.
MAYOR, CAN YOU GIVE US AN IDEA OF REALLY JUST HOW IMPORTANT THE TRADE, UH, IS IN TERMS OF HOUSTON AND WHY IT'S SO IMPORTANT? WELL, I WILL TELL YOU IT'S HUGE WHEN IT COMES TO EXPORTS.
HOUSTON RANKS NUMBER ONE IN THE WORLD.
UH, NUMBER ONE, UH, WHEN IT COMES TO THE PORT, UM, IN TERMS OF FOREIGN TONNAGE, HOUSTON'S PORT IS NUMBER ONE IN THE UNITED STATES, NUMBER ONE.
AND WE'VE HELD THAT RECORD FOR, FOR SEVERAL YEARS.
WHEN IT COMES TO THE NUMBER OF COMPANIES DOING BUSINESS OUTSIDE OF THE UNITED STATES, THERE ARE ABOUT 3000 OF THEM.
AND WHEN IT COMES TO COMPANIES OUTSIDE OF THE UNITED STATES DOING BUSINESS, UH, HERE IN THE CITY OF HOUSTON, YOU ARE LOOKING AT ABOUT 1700 OF THEM.
WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE DIVERSITY OF OUR CITY, WE WOULD NOT BE, UM, AS SUCCESSFUL AND PRODUCTIVE WITHOUT TRADE AND INTERNATIONAL INVESTMENTS COMING FROM OUTSIDE COMING TO OUR WEST CITIES.
WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE, UM, UH, LEMME JUST USE AN EXAMPLE, THE SALI CENTER, UH, THE SEVENTH, IS IT THE SEVENTH OR EIGHTH? THE SEVENTH, UH, CENTER IN THE WORLD THAT IS UNDER CONSTRUCTION RIGHT NOW AT ALLEN PARKWAY AND MONTROSE.
IN LARGE PART, THOSE SORT OF THINGS ARE HAPPENING BECAUSE OF TRADE INVESTMENTS IN THE INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS.
AND THAT'S WHY, UH, REALLY AMBASSADOR, AMBASSADOR HONORS US, UH, BY BEING PRESENT, COMING TO THE CITY OF HOUSTON.
I THINK IT HIGHLIGHTS AND SHOWCASES THAT.
AND THEN I CAN'T SAY ENOUGH FOR THE CONGRESSWOMAN BECAUSE I MEAN, SHE IS CONSTANTLY TRAVELING ALL OVER THE GLOBE, UM, AND DOES THAT ON A REGULAR BASIS.
AND WHERE SHE GOES, HOUSTON GOES, AND WHEN SHE COMES BACK, SHE BRINGS BACK THOSE RELATIONSHIPS BACK TO THE CITY OF HOUSTON.
SO WE'RE LOOKING AT TWO, QUITE FRANKLY, TWO EXCEPTIONAL WOMEN, UH, WHO REALLY EPITOMIZES TRADE INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS, DIVERSITY AND EXCELLENCE AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL.
THAT'S WHY I'M JUST SO HONORED, UM, THAT, UM, THIS PERSON, UH, THE, UH, AMBASSADOR, UH, UH, YALE, BOTH OF THESE ARE FROM YALE, YOU KNOW, THAT IS IRONIC.
ISN'T THAT INTERESTING?
UH, BUT THAT'S HOW IMPORTANT TRADE IS, UH, TO THIS CITY.
YOU CAN'T BE, UH, BOASTED ABOUT BEING A GLOBAL INTERNATIONAL CITY IF YOU DON'T HAVE A VIBRANT, DYNAMIC TRADE, UM, INTEREST HAPPENING.
THANK YOU ALSO VERY MUCH APPRECIATE IT.