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June 3, 2007, The Buffalo News, “Business must do better job informing public on benefits of free trade”
If a government policy creates many higher-paying jobs while putting fewer lower-paying ones at risk, would you favor it? Virtually everyone would say yes. So why are free trade agreements — mechanisms that generate far greater benefits than disadvantages — perceived so negatively? The answer comes down to misinformation disseminated by trade detractors and the failure of trade advocates, such as the business community and the Bush administration, to effectively make their case.
May 30, 2007, Kansas City Star, “Keep momentum on U.S. trade”
At the end of next month, a law streamlining the process for approval of international trade deals will expire. Congress should renew it quickly. Approval would allow the next president, regardless of party, to continue prying open international markets. Continued progress on trade is in America’s long-term best interests. We are the world’s largest exporter. Our economy benefits from expanding foreign markets, and consumers benefit from the lower prices and increased choices provided by trade.
May 15, 2007 – The Washington Times, “Not-quite-historic trade bills”
Congress and the Bush administration have achieved a potentially historic bipartisan breakthrough in U.S. trade policy. The operative phrase is "potentially historic."
April 13, 2007 – Economic Times, “WTO members must settle row at earliest”
It is crucial for WTO members to break the deadlock over Doha negotiations soon as the next few months would result in a number of political changes globally, making progress tougher. While the US government does not have the mandate to take crucial decisions independent of the Congress until its trade promotion authority gets extended in July, movement in the top political ranks in a number of European countries is going to make EU trade commissioner Peter Mandelson’s negotiating position more difficult.
April 4, 2007 – The Washington Times, “Favorable trade winds?”
“While blustery headlines about the Democratic investigations or stormy presidential-congressional relations mount daily, more favorable winds might be blowing on the critical issue of international trade. No doubt there are many dangerous currents and compromises ahead on the issue, and numerous places were protectionism might prevail. Still, there is also fresh hope that liberalized trade policies might not be dead this year after all despite numerous predictions to the contrary.”
April 4, 2007 – East Valley Tribune, “Congress should OK trade pacts without overregulating allies”
The timing was most unusual for the early-to-bed Bush White House. At 1 a.m. Monday, in a letter dated Sunday, it formally notified Congress, which was out of town in any case, that the United States and South Korea had just reached agreement on a free-trade pact… The pact with South Korea is being billed as the largest free-trade agreement since NAFTA, and its backers have hopes for it beyond just a projected $29 billion increase in the current $75 billion annual trade between the two countries. The White House hopes it will strengthen the U.S.-South Korean alliance in a critical part of the world, and free-traders hope it will revive the flagging Doha round of talks toward reducing trade barriers worldwide.
March 20, 2007 – The Hill, Sen. Chuck Grassley, “TPA Dovetails With Doha Round Talks”
“Renewing Trade Promotion Authority for the president is not a Republican issue. It is not a Democratic issue. This is an American issue. The world expects America to lead on trade policy. If we cannot do that, other countries will step forward and we could end up being excluded from preferential trade deals.”
February 19, 2007 – Wisconsin State Journal, “Free Trade Needs Fast-Track Power”
“An extension of President Bush's authority to negotiate trade pacts benefits Wisconsin. That's why the state's congressional delegation should strongly support its continuation. The fast-track authority allows Bush to reach trade deals and submit them to Congress for an up-or-down vote. The authority expires June 30. Some important trade deals are hanging on this authority, including those connected with the Doha round of World Trade Organization talks and one with South Korea. The WTO talks are rightly focusing on lowering trade barriers on goods such as agriculture products and manufactured goods and services. This would help Wisconsin farmers and industry by opening up global markets.”
February 7, 2007 – The Washington Times, Bruce Klingner, “Where a Trade Push is Needed”
“Since last year, trade representatives in the United States and South Korea have worked to forge a free-trade agreement (FTA) a pact that would provide significant economic and political benefits to both nations. But a deadline is looming: the expiration of ‘fast track’ trade promotion authority….Although ‘fast track’ authority doesn't expire until June 30, the effective deadline for completing FTA negotiations is mid-February. The Bush administration must submit enabling documentation by March 30, and the preceding four to six weeks are necessary for ‘scrubbing the text,’ a critical but time-consuming technical and legal review.”
February 5, 2007 – Wall Street Journal, “Exports and Free Trade”
“President Bush's trade promotion authority expires in a few months, and along with it the ability to strike new free-trade deals. So it's worth highlighting that some of the fastest-growing destinations for American products are the countries with which we've signed trade-opening accords. According to the U.S. Trade Representative's office, U.S. goods exports have climbed by some 26% among the 10 countries with which the U.S. has signed accords since 2001. Meanwhile, goods exports to the rest of the world have only grown by 13% across the same period.”
February 4, 2007 – The Washington Post, “Trade Boom; U.S. Exports Are Growing Fast; Let's Hope Congress Doesn't Slam on the Brakes”
“The strong growth in the U.S. economy reported last week for the last quarter of 2006, and the year as a whole, had a lot to do with burgeoning American exports. In the first 11 months of 2006, they reached $1.1 trillion, a 13 percent increase over the same period in 2005. All this good news is one reason congressional Democrats should support President Bush's request to renew his trade promotion authority, which expires July 1. The authority allows the president to negotiate bilateral and multilateral trade agreements and submit them to a single, up-or-down vote by Congress; without it, the deals Mr. Bush has cut with Latin American, Middle Eastern and Asian countries would have been impossible.”
February 2, 2007 – The New York Times, “A Bipartisan Trade Policy”
“The White House and the new Congress still have a chance to create a bipartisan consensus on trade….If the administration can put together a solid plan for proceeding with negotiations for the Doha round of global trade talks, Congress should renew the president's fast-track negotiating authority….Democrats are right to insist that the trade agenda advance the interests of all Americans…But they need to acknowledge that putting the brakes on global growth is still the surest path to losing American jobs.”