President George W. Bush tried to sell a controversial Central American free trade pact to reluctant fellow Republicans on Friday by calling it a sign of U.S. commitment to emerging democracies in the region.
Solidly opposed by Democrats and unpopular among Republicans in states such as North Carolina where the textile industry has been hit hard by job losses, the Central American Free Trade Agreement would tear down trade barriers between the United States, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic.
“CAFTA is important foreign policy,” Bush said. “It will help stabilize young democracies. It will help our friends grow and prosper and that’s good. It’s in our interest that we do just that.”
Bush toured the Helms plant of R.L. Stowe Mills in Belmont, in the Piedmont region of central North Carolina, walking between giant spools of white cotton thread and passing mammoth bales of cotton.
Noisy green cotton-winding machines drowned out shouted questions about the controversy swirling around Bush’s top political adviser, Karl Rove, who is caught up in a federal investigation of who leaked the name of a covert CIA agent.
North Carolina’s two Republican senators -- Elizabeth Dole and Richard Burr -- both voted for CAFTA last month. But Rep. Sue Myrick, a Republican from Charlotte, is the state’s only House of Representatives’ member to endorse the pact, and another, North Carolina Republican, Rep. Walter Jones, has been at the forefront of efforts to defeat it.
Democrats argue that weak worker rights provisions in the agreement will lead to labor abuses. It is also opposed by lawmakers from sugar producing states and others who link free trade to America’s soaring trade deficits.
'A good deal for workers'
“This deal is a good deal for workers,” Bush told an invited audience at Gaston College. “I am for free trade, but I’m also for a level playing field ... I took a look at the playing field. It’s not level. It’s not fair.”
Concerns about China’s trade policies and takeover bids for U.S. companies have spread a general anxiety about trade that has spilled over into the CAFTA debate.
Some House Republicans have proposed legislation penalizing China for subsidizing its goods, hoping that a vote to punish Beijing will provide unenthusiastic colleagues enough political cover to vote for CAFTA.
Defeat on an important international trade issue would be a major blow to Bush who has been plagued by falling poll numbers and emboldened Democrats who want to consign him to lame-duck status six months into his second four-year term.
Supporters argue that failure to pass CAFTA would have a devastating impact on U.S. leadership in market-opening negotiations with the World Trade Organization and with other nations.
The Senate voted 54-45 in favor of CAFTA, setting the stage for a final battle in the House, where the agreement’s many critics have vowed to defeat it. The vote could come as early as next week.
“It’s important to help secure the democracies in our own neighborhood and so, for the sake of our economic security and for the sake of national security, the United States House of Representatives should follow the lead of the United States Senate and pass CAFTA,” Bush said.
Before leaving for North Carolina, Bush and President Antonio Saca of El Salvador discussed the agreement during a White House meeting.
U.S. officials signed the deal a year ago but it needs congressional approval to go into effect. The six CAFTA nations now import about $15 billion worth of U.S. products each year.
