House Leaders Say ‘No’ to Fast Track, Korea and Colombia Deals
House Leaders Say ‘No’ to Fast Track, Korea and Colombia Deals
by James Parks, Jun 29, 2007
On the day before Fast Track trade authority expires, four top House leaders said they were united in opposition to two free trade deals and they do not intend to renew Fast Track.
In a statement issued today, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.), Ways and Means Chairman Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) and Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee Chairman Sander Levin (D-Mich.) say:
Our legislative priorities do not include the renewal of fast track authority. Before that debate can even begin, we must expand the benefits of globalization to all Americans.
Fast Track trade-promotion authority allows the president to negotiate trade deals but prevents Congress from improving or rejecting harmful provisions by allowing only “yes” or “no” votes on such deals.
It has been a major weapon in President Bush’s trade arsenal that has produced flawed agreements such as CAFTA and the proposed agreements with Colombia and South Korea.
No matter what happens, the deals with South Korea and Colombia are dead in the water, the House leaders say.
There is widespread concern in Congress about the level of violence in Colombia, the impunity, the lack of investigations and prosecutions, and the role of the paramilitary. Issues of this nature cannot solely be resolved through language in a trade agreement.
We believe there must first be concrete evidence of sustained results on the ground in Colombia…before consideration of any FTA (free trade agreement).
As far as the deal with South Korea, they add:
Unfortunately, the [Korea] FTA as currently negotiated is a missed opportunity.
The agreement does not address in an effective manner the persistent problem of non-tariff barriers, particularly those blocking access of U.S. manufactured products in South Korea’s market.
That is particularly the case in the automotive sector, where last year South Korea exported more than 700,000 cars into the U.S., while the United States exported fewer than 5,000. These numbers illustrate deep-seated and fundamental problems in market access and a heavily one-sided trading relationship that can be expected only to undercut support for the agreement.
As a consequence, we cannot support the KFTA as currently negotiated.
United Steelworkers President Leo Gerard praised the Democrats’ actions, saying this is the kind of action the voters called for last November.
Last fall, voters across this country spoke out forcefully for a new direction on trade. This decision shows that their trust was well-placed in the Democratic majority. A lot of hard work is ahead of us, but the Democrats have created the foundation upon which to build an approach that truly fights for our nation’s interests.
AFL-CIO President John Sweeney welcomed the announcement by the Democratic leadership and said:
Today’s announcement recognizes that we have a great deal of work ahead of us to address the many challenges our nation faces in ensuring that working families—here and abroad—can enjoy their fair share of the benefits of the global economy. If we are to achieve that goal, we will need the full support of our allies in Congress, and we look forward to working with Congress to make the promise of globalization real for our members.
Two other deals still face an uncertain future. Last month, congressional Democrats announced an agreement with the White House to make significant improvements in the labor and environment provisions of the Panama and Peru free trade pacts. Although the agreement made “substantial progress” in the workers’ rights and environmental provisions, Sweeney said the AFL-CIO still is concerned the agreement “fails to adequately address issues related to the outsourcing of U.S. jobs and the ability of foreign corporations to challenge U.S. laws, among others.”
Today’s announcement made clear that House Democrats are committed to ensuring that Peru and Panama bring their labor laws into compliance with international labor standards before the agreement can be put into effect. The congressional vote has been delayed until fall at the earliest.
The congressional leaders also said they intend to push legislation to ensure that U.S. trade policy helps U.S. workers share in the benefits of a global economy.
We will continue working to improve our trade policy, while at the same time addressing the increased economic insecurity faced by American families. We expect to move forward in the near future with legislation to address the growing imbalance in trade with China, strengthen overall enforcement of U.S. trade agreements and U.S. trade laws, as well as overhaul and improve support to ensure that American workers and firms remain the most competitive in the world.
Original Article