McCain tags Dems
on trade treaty
By LIBBY QUAID, Associated Press Writer 51 minutes ago
ROUND ROCK, Texas - Republican John McCain said the desire by Democratic presidential rivals Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement would jeopardize crucial military support from Canada.
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McCain used a town-hall style meeting Friday at Dell Inc. headquarters to emphasize his support for NAFTA. The effects of the 1994 trade pact are still hotly debated, but studies indicate the deal has resulted in record exports from Texas to Canada and Mexico.
Trade and national security are “interconnected with each other,” the Arizona senator said.
“One of our greatest assets in Afghanistan are our Canadian friends. We need our Canadian friends, and we need their continued support in Afghanistan,” McCain said. “So what do we do? The two Democratic candidates for president say they’re going to unilaterally abrogate NAFTA.
“How do you think the Canadian people are going to react to that?” McCain said.
Canada has 2,500 troops serving in Afghanistan along with 29,000 U.S. soldiers.
In fact, Clinton and Obama did not say they would abrogate the agreement; the word “abrogate” means to abolish or repeal.
Rather, both Democrats said at a debate Tuesday in Cleveland they would insist on renegotiating NAFTA and would threaten to opt out of the agreement unless Canada and Mexico come to the negotiating table.
“I will say we will opt out of NAFTA unless we renegotiate it, and we renegotiate on terms that are favorable to all of America,” Clinton said.
Obama agreed: “I will make sure that we renegotiate … I think we should use the hammer of a potential opt-out as leverage to ensure that we actually get labor and environmental standards that are enforced.”
Lee ADDS: The Democrat Candidates were both clear…”Either NAFTA will be renegotiated OR ELSE.” I consider that BLUNTLY STATED!
February 29th, 2008 at 4:03 pm
I am Canadian. We are frankly tired of the ranting of the Democrats. Canada is finally after many years able to sustain it’s economy without relying on the US for a majority of trade. Yes we need you, and you really don’t need us.
The US has bullied every country in the world and frankly, I believe we are still one of your few remaining friends. You need oil? I suppose you could just come and take it if push came to shove. We are accused of unfair subsidies in both Lumber and farming, yet the states subsidize everything any time there is a glitch in your economy.
We are your friends, and NAFTA is not perfect, in fact we here actually believe in many parts of NAFTA we got the shaft. Let’s renegotiate. We want more for our power, our Oil and our raw resources. We want a better soft wood lumber deal, we want an end to unfair farm subsidies and the list goes on.
Let’s open this can of worms. Frankly, I think your economy is bad enough without shooting your friends in the back.
February 29th, 2008 at 4:39 pm
I am GLAD to hear a Canadian’s view! I agree with Richard and see his words as something both (and ALL) Democrats should take into consideration!
Again I say THANK YOU to Richard Kiers…
March 1st, 2008 at 8:26 am
To start with, Canada is a problem, but a small one. However, I guess you all do realize that Canadian companies have a huge leg up on American companies since the government…not the companies that have to compete against our workers…handles all health care costs, so they aren’t factored into the price of goods. Thus, a car, for example, costs $3,000-$4,000 less to produce in Canada than it does here. So our success in Iraq is also dependent on NAFTA? One more notch in the gun against our being in Iraq. NAFTA has turned America into a rust belt! The Canadians…indeed our friends… are just going to have to deal with our need to have our workers employed! Like I said, Canada is a small part. Mexico is the big part. This isn’t free trade. Our American companies are opening factories in Mexico, where people get paid Nickels and bringing their products back in to the US. This is nothing more than a profit-grab on the part of big corporations, outsourcing jobs that produce American goods, to Mexico! McCain is doing nothing more than being the big Corporatist candidate. That’s his job. That’s why his staff is peopled by non-paid (by him) lobbyists. NAFTA was Clinton’s big sellout to keep his job for a second term, and McCain is the company guy set up to be President and promote “free trade”…which isn’t free and it isn’t trade. It’s outsourcing our middle class way of life.
March 1st, 2008 at 10:32 am
What looked good has come to be the giant squid! The everyday American earns but so much; yet, the things to keep household upkeep is on level parrity. At the end of the day, there is no more money to go around.
NAFTA was/is a way for Market junkies to sit back and overload the systems. Now, allAmericans have seen their livelihood go down the drain with the bathwater of all bathwaters - NAFTA. Which country is begging for American goods. Nobody! Oops, you mean American Military?! Soldiers in the area?!!!
Now that the Dollar is in RECESSION ( under whatever slowdown you call it, it’s still a recession), you see the inveestment junkies are added to the list of losers. Home Foreclosures, Debt Recovery, IRA early siphoning, and high cost of living (buying food, paying rent, gasoline spikes, cableTV rises, utilities equaling rent) are all making the Average Joe a homeless person.
All because of NAFTA.
Before Obama, we were a people at large who took what the news media said without query. When our elected officials sided with the news media we just prayed that all will be well. We had no earthly idea what was going on under our noses until Hurricane Katrina. Yes, Katrina.
If poor Blacks, poor whites, and Mexicans/Latinos can become instant refugees in the land of plenty in the span of an extended rainstorm, then what will become of the rest of us.
As a matter of fact, millions of people losing wealth of land were elderly but poor Blacks. The truth will be told in our time. So lie on about NAFA.
March 1st, 2008 at 3:38 pm
Bith Paul Block and ‘I AM’ are ‘in the dark’ about NAFTA! Once the stop listening to a person such as Obama, who KNOWS ONLY WHAT IS SCRIPTED about NAFTA, they just may learn a bit of TRUTH and who BENEFITS.