Obama Ditches Panama Trade For Health Care
The Hill newspaper reports that a free trade
agreement with Panama negotiated by the Bush
administration is being shelved to
facilitate unity among Democrats, especially
in the House of Representatives, on health
care reform.
Only a few weeks ago the Obama team was
pushing the proposed Panama agreement in
Congress, trying to clear obstacles erected
by the Democratic majority in the waning
months of the Bush administration.
New Trade Representative Ron Kirk told the
U.S. Chamber of Commerce he was "working
furiously” to wrap up the Panama deal and to
get final approval on a long-pending
agreement with Colombia — both of which
would benefit U.S. businesses.
Less than a week later, dozens of House
Democrats balked in a letter to Speaker
Nancy Pelosi, The Hill reports. Now the
administration is backing away, fearing a
messy intramural fight over trade could
spoil efforts to pass health care by
summer’s end.
That’s unfortunate. President Barack Obama
had the right idea on free trade but was
unwilling to buck Democratic orthodoxy,
largely dictated by Big Labor’s view that
trade agreements threaten union jobs.
American firms are the losers.
Kirk was correct last month when he said it
was time for some in Congress to "stop and
be a bit more introspective about the
battles that we continually wage with one
another over the value of trade.” Too bad it
fell on deaf ears.
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