WASHINGTON,OCTOBER 14, 2004
PTI

Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry, who had earlier denounced as "traitors" CEOs of US companies outsourcing to countries like India and China, acknowledged that the practice is here to stay, but promised a level-playing field for the American worker.

"Outsourcing is going to happen. I have acknowledged that. In union halls across the country, I have had shop stewards stand up and say, 'Will you promise me you are going to stop all this outsourcing?' and I have looked them in the eye and I have said, 'No, I can't do that,'" Kerry said during the third and last presidential debate with President George W Bush.

He, however, promised that he is going to ensure a level-playing field for the American worker and fight for his job as hard as he fights for his own. "What I can promise you is that I will make the playing field as fair as possible, that I will, for instance, make certain that with respect to the tax system that you as a worker in America are not subsidising the loss of your job," he said.

The senator said American businessmen feel they benefit from going overseas as they get to defer taxes but "that is not smart. I don't want American workers subsidising the loss of their own job. And when I am president, we are going to shut the loophole and we are going to use that money to lower corporate tax rates in America," he said.