Archives » Monday, November 17, 2008
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Mac Margolis
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Nov 17, 2008 05:09 PM
It's a long way from Washington to Bogotá, but that distance is
growing. The problem is not a reshuffling of the geological plates, but
a seismic shift in United States politics that has left millions of
people in the lower tier of the Americas apprehensive and free traders
running for cover.
What's a stake is the Free Trade
Agreement–FTA in policy speak–between the U.S. and Colombia, which
would grease the wheels of commerce between two of the most traditional
allies in the western hemisphere. Díos knows the world economy could
use some greasing. But indications are that's not what the Democrat
party, which come January will own an even bigger majority of seats in
both the Senate and the House, has in mind. Not for Colombia, at least.
Bolstered
by trade unions and protectionist industries, from the corn belt to the
rust belt, the Democrats have never been enthusiastic about free trade.
A notable exception was the administration of Bill Clinton, who
midwived the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), but the mood
on Capitol Hill has become far more insular since then. The Columbia
pact was dear to the outgoing administration of George W. Bush, but he
is something of a toxic asset at the moment. What will president Barack
Obama do?
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