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Obama Needs to Take a Stand on Trade
When President Obama attends the Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP) meeting (or the more innocuous sounding, North American Leaders Summit) in Guadalajara next week he has the opportunity to keep some campaign promises.
The SPP has been referred to as the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) on steroids. For good reason.
As a candidate Obama was a strong opponent of NAFTA. During a primary debate in Cleveland Obama said : "I will make sure that we renegotiate... I think we should use the hammer of a potential opt-out as leverage...". He noted that NAFTA had outsourced millions of jobs, had weak provisions for protection of the environment and labor standards.
Now, it seems he has "softened quite a bit, to put it mildly", according to former US Ambassador to Canada Paul Cellucci.
Candidate Obama said, in an Obama Administration, meetings would be conducted with transparency and the active involvement of citizens, labor, the private sector and non-governmental organizations. So why hasn't he scrapped SPP?
At least NAFTA was debated in Congress, SPP is a strictly closed door meeting between the Administrations of the US, Canada, Mexico and the North American Competitiveness Council.
No citizen input, no governmental oversight, just the "Three Amigos" and big business interests.
Unless he has completely softened on the tough talk of his candidacy he must end SPP. SPP, it seems, could just be a clever way to follow through on the provisions of NAFTA that were launched in 1994.
"Harmonization", a key component of SPP, will lower the standards that protect the environment, the safety of our food and our health.
Other than increasing the profits of corporations, the hopped up, secretly negotiated SPP offers no benefit to the average American. Either in security or prosperity. We have seen the emergence of the Swine flu, numerous food safety violations and the never ending loss of jobs.
Mexico has seen its economy collapse, a cycle of increasing violence, militarization and drug trafficking. Small farmers have been pushed off their land and into abject poverty. Now big business and the Three Amigos offer them more of the same only faster? So who is benefiting? Canada?
Hardly, Canadians have never liked NAFTA, and the best SPP can offer them is increased mining of the Alberta Tar Sands to fuel the US appetite for oil and more armed Transportation and Security Administration officers on Canadian soil.
President Obama has given enough ground on his campaign promises; on ending torture, on single payer health care, on ending the war. It's time to bring trade into the light of day, like he promised.
A partnership should be built on more than bureaucrats and fat cat businessmen, it needs citizen involvement and approval.
Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur of Ohio perhaps stated it best, "We need to change the nature of our trade agreements. I hope this new president will lead us in that direction-- toward more democracy and less exploitation. We'll see."
Yes we'll see.
16 Comments so far
Show AllObama needs to take a stand on anything. Bush's stands were selfish and unpopular, but at least he took them. (do not misinterpret that, I still hate the shrub) Obama is a total disappointment with his ridiculous "bi-partisanship"...which I believe is simply cowardice trying to assure 2012. Stop the balancing act and get down to the ground of reality with We the People. Remember them?...they're the ones that elected you.
Yes, by not taking a stand on health care and turning the process over to Congress, Obama has enabled the insurance/pharma/AMA cartel to control the agenda, thereby giving lobbyists(who he promised to control) more power than ever.
Obama realizes that the Democrats lost control of Congress in 1994 because Bill Clinton zealously and openly campaigned for NAFTA sans environmental and safety conditions in 1993. That is why SPP is being conducted in such a clandestine fashion.
At the rate Obama and the Democrats are capitulating on so many issues, they will likely lose control of Congress in 2010
"At the rate Obama and the Democrats are capitulating on so many issues, they will likely lose control of Congress in 2010"
Looking more likely by the day.
Yes, by not taking a stand on health care and turning the process over to Congress, Obama has enabled the insurance/pharma/AMA cartel to control the agenda, thereby giving lobbyists(who he promised to control) more power than ever.
Obama realizes that the Democrats lost control of Congress in 1994 because Bill Clinton zealously and openly campaigned for NAFTA sans environmental and safety conditions in 1993. That is why SPP is being conducted in such a clandestine fashion.
At the rate Obama and the Democrats are capitulating on so many issues, they will likely lose control of Congress in 2010
raydelcamino August 5th, 2009 11:22 am...No doubt they will lose control. AND, allowing these hired "mouths" to go around shouting down the dems in these staged protests is outrageous. If the dems were not in on it (dem=Repug),they would at least call them out...confront them. But, since they are all part of this dastardly "play" being staged for the unwitting, as in all confrontations, they will just stand there and take it...just as they did when the Repugs had control and Pelosi said, "impeachment is off the table". It's all a grand show and the dupes are in the audience eating mutton and bread, laughing and falling/staying asleep as the circus continues.
When President Obama attends the Security and Prosperity Partnership in Guadalajara next week he has the opportunity to keep some campaign promises.
ROTFL!
Obama already made it clear last year in the primaries that he has no intention of pushing for trade reform for the better. Bailing out the multinational corps who benefited from these trade scams is what he does for a living anyway !
"he has the opportunity to keep some campaign promises"
"So why hasn't he scrapped SPP?"
"It's time to bring trade into the light of day, like he promised."
"Yes we'll see."
DON'T YOU GUYS REALIZE YOU'VE BEEN HAD? Get some IQ.
Obama has kept few of his campaign promises. But this is his opportunity to finally address problems in our economy, stimulate job growth and return and rebuild our manufacturing base.
If he doesn't do this either....then he is not a friend of the American people. He is simply a small man, a coward in a job that is far too large for him.
Now we will know for sure. He will remove any doubt, any defense, any question about who and what he really is.
He's waiting to see what Bill Clinton would do.
For the U S to have any clout other than militarily in the
modern day world, the US military will have to pull back its wings and the American people will have to take a 50% cut in wages across the board
Never happen---tough shinskey.
if only obama had the populist backbone bobby kennedy had. keep waiting for all those posters with HOPE emblazoned upon them to come to MEAN something...something like the unequivocal support of the actual PEOPLE (as opposed to 'corporate persons') of this country and world...an opportunity, yes...will he rise to it? is another question... (and not just 'he'...after all, there are plenty of 'leaders' who COULD be representing their flesh-and-blood 'constituents' rather than the already bloated trade behemoths throwing their weight around. granted, speaking truth to power is not easy and is indeed gutsy given the ample history of tactics of violence, subterfuge and secrecy employed by those who presume at dominion over all.
we need-the PLANET needs to liberate itself from such fools. way back in '57 mlk said:
"Freedom only comes through persistent revolt, through persistent agitation, through persistently rising up against the system of evil."
'more democracy and less exploitation' would certainly be a step in the right direction. this 'race to the bottom' that serves greed over need has gone on long enough. changing the acronym of reprehensible policy doesn't fool anyone but the most myopic. spp has got to go!!!!!!PLEASE!!
Again, We, the working classes have been doublecrossed by
Bill Clinton and the leadership of the Democratic party.
The outsorcing of our industrial base to China was a direct
result of the Clinton Game Plan. Hillary was busy outsourcing
many of our industries to India, and she is still at it with
the promise to India of bigger and better Nuclear Energy Plants. New boss same as old boss.
Keep in mind that it was Clinton, Dodd and Phil Gramm who
destroyed the Steagle Glass act that removed all regulations
on the Banking and Financial systems.
Obama seems insecure without the Clintons.
oh - he'll find a way to doublecross people on that too .
there's enough of a pattern already after 6 months and the sad thing is - there were signs before that - against hope.
he is CLEARLY an ally of big business interests. there is no question about it.
all the years of "consensus building" , community organizing, "standing with labor"
were preludes to eventually "making a stand" .........
on the side of the very rich, powerful and the status quo of class war by the rich against everyone else.
he talks the talk, but walks twisted.
he is a great contortionist. unless he has some great surprise for everyone to show he is better than any of that.........
wanna bet?
The Democrats and Republicans - both parties are bought and paid for by corporations who are truly running this country. The politicians only represent their corporate paymasters. Listen to Ralph Nader and others on youtube to understand the bigger picture. The United States is no longer a republic. It has become a corporate fascist country run by every conceivable interest.
The two parties are two wings of the same turkey. We were sold out starting with President Reagan and going strong ever since. Wake up folks and register as an independent.
I just don't have the heart anymore to speak the honest truth...
to all my doctor, lawyer, teacher, chemist...
or otherwise professionally employed liberal friends who voted for Obama...
then immediately lowered the standard of what is considered "Hope" or "Change"...
They will go to any lengths to justify the wholesale capitulation to Capital...
it is punishment to bear witness...
Through complacency and lesser-evilism ...
The Republic will be torn asunder...
Held at the mercy of corporate emperialists...
And consistently undermined by "realists"...
Advocating for democratic neo-liberalism...
Friendly fascism... User-friendly...
Not realizing that they themselves...
were advocating another flatland exploitation paradigm...
Subjugating the "I" & the "we" beneath the "IT" of Reductionism...
Lord have Mercy...
The "origional sin" of the Enlightenment... If you catch my drift...