With the House of Representatives likely to vote today to kill the Colombia trade deal, it’s worthwhile to look at what the deal would do for our trade with that nation. The U.S. Trade Representative sends the following data:
Is the Colombia deal a good one for U.S. workers and consumers? Listen to Democratic Representative Linda Sanchez of California, who opposes it because it is too effective in expanding markets for U.S. goods:
Here’s a crazy idea: let the Colombian government worry about their agricultural sector. If you honestly believe the accord will significantly increase sales of U.S. exports — as it clearly will — then you ought to approve it as quickly as possible, not kill it. Speaker Pelosi’s arrogant and unilateral move is a stick in the eye of America’s staunchest allies in the hemisphere. By demonstrating that America is willing to break its word even to its best friends, it empowers Hugo Chavez just when it seemed that his influence was on the wane in the region. It also takes away from future presidents one of their most important ‘soft’ foreign policy tools: improved trade relations with the U.S. That’s a lot of damage done in one quick stroke. And for what?
