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Clinton Opposes
Colombia, Panama Trade Deals
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Clinton Opposes
Colombia, Panama Trade
Deals
WASHINGTON, (Reuters) -
Democratic presidential
front-runner Sen.
Hillary Clinton said on
Thursday she opposes
pending free trade
agreements with
Colombia, Panama and
South Korea, but would
vote for a pact with
Peru.
The New York Democrat
has previously said she
opposed the South Korean
agreement, but had not
taken a position on the
three Latin American
trade pacts.
Her opposition to the
Colombia and Panama
agreements could make it
much harder for the Bush
administration to
persuade Democrats to
vote for those accords,
particularly if she
holds onto her lead in
the race for the
Democratic nomination.
The U.S. House of
Representatives voted
285-132 earlier on
Thursday to approve the
trade deal with Peru.
The Senate is expected
to follow suit by the
end of the year.
"I support the trade
agreement with Peru. It
has very strong labor
and environmental
protections," Clinton
said in a statement.
"This agreement makes
meaningful progress on
advancing workers'
rights, and also levels
the playing field for
American workers."
"However, I will oppose
the pending trade
agreements with South
Korea, Colombia and
Panama," she said.
"The South Korean
agreement does not
create a level playing
field for American
carmakers. I am very
concerned about the
history of violence
against trade unionists
in Colombia. And as long
as the head of Panama's
National Assembly is a
fugitive from justice in
America, I cannot
support that agreement."
While national polls
show Clinton in the
lead, she holds only a
narrow advantage in Iowa
over Illinois Sen.
Barack Obama and former
North Carolina Sen. John
Edwards. Iowa holds the
first of the
state-by-state battles
to choose the Democratic
and Republican
candidates for president
on Jan. 3.
Edwards recently
announced his opposition
to all four trade
agreements and has
pressed Clinton to make
her position clear.
Automakers Ford and
Chrysler say the South
Korean agreement is a
one-sided pact that
would boost that
country's already large
car exports to the
United States without
providing U.S. companies
with meaningful new
sales opportunities in
Korea.
The Bush administration
says the auto provisions
would open South Korea's
market, rejecting the
automakers' complaints.
They also point to
strong industry support
from other sectors and
note that General Motors
is neutral on the pact.
Many Democrats oppose
the Colombian agreement
because they believe
Colombian President
Alvaro Uribe has not
done enough to bring the
killers of trade
unionists to justice.
The White House says
Colombia has made a
remarkable
transformation under
Uribe's rule and
rejecting the agreement
would damage U.S.
standing in Latin
America.
The Panama pact ran into
trouble when that
country's National
Assembly elected Pedro
Miguel Gonzalez to lead
the legislature.
Gonzalez is wanted in
the United States on
charges he killed a U.S.
soldier in 1992.
The Bush administration
has expressed deep
disappointment with the
National Assembly's
decision, but still
wants approval of the
Panama pact. (Editing by
Todd Eastham) |
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