BRT President John Engler argued the merits of U.S. global investment in a speech last week to the Detroit Economic Club. With President Obama and Gov. Romney due to debate foreign policy issues tonight, Engler's remarks warrant renewed attention.

From his prepared text:

Almost weekly I have an opportunity to remind leaders in Washington that 95 percent of the world’s consumers …. our future customers ….live outside the United States.

We can’t remain aloof in our offices and factories and hope to reach these billions of customers. We need to do the research, make the investments, and go sell the products if we’re going to be successful.

The competition is fierce. And the competition is relentless.

I would argue that companies of every size – small, medium, large -- or very large – have a stake in winning this global competition.

At the Business Roundtable, we’ve been documenting the value of global operations in terms of the jobs created here in the United States.

I think Michiganians have a good awareness of how globally engaged companies can drive jobs and growth here at home.

Michigan names, like Ford, Dow, Kellogg Amway and Whirlpool are also well-known global names.

Twenty-three million Americans are directly employed by U.S. companies with foreign operations.

Another 40 million Americans work in these companies’ supply chains, or otherwise benefit from their business activity.

The global sales of America’s companies are a GOOD thing. And telling that story, and defending that activity, shouldn’t be all that difficult.

Good facts on which to base a question or two,Mr. Scheiffer!