The Coup Against Democracy in Slow Motion

While some proponents of the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) see the agreement as a means for the U.S. to compete in world market trade, watchdog groups like the “Public Citizen’s Global Trade Watch” see CAFTA as an expansion of the failure of NAFTA and a license to those who are willing to compete against the U.S., on unfair terms and then sell us those same goods.

A free trade pact with Central America and the Dominican Republic cleared the US Congress, after it was approved by a narrow 217-215 vote in the House of Representatives.
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Pushed by the administration of President George W. Bush, CAFTA-DR passed the House thanks to 15 Democrats who voted against their party line. Twenty-seven Republican lawmakers and one independent voted against the pact.
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The trade agreement was hotly debated among both parties and represents a key victory for Bush, who risked considerable political capital in pressing for its approval.
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Signed more than a year ago, CAFTA-DR was approved by a 54-45 vote in the Senate on June 30 and its passage in the House was uncertain until the last minute.
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Bush and his cabinet fought an uphill battle to have it approved.
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While CAFTA-DR is expected to have little impact on the US economy, which exports 15 billion dollars worth of goods to Central America, it became the most controversial free trade agremeent Congress debated in years.
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In a rare meeting behind closed doors, Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney and US Trade Representative Rob Portman spent more than one hour in Congress on Wednesday to press Republican lawmakers to fully support the trade pact.
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Backers of the trade…

Posted by Twitch

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