Throughout the presidential campaign Barak Obama apologists like Fareed Zakaria hoped that Obama was just lying to the American people about his protectionist stances on trade, and that if elected Obama would prove to be every bit the free trader that Presidents Bill Clinton and George Bush have been. We still hold out hope that Zakaria is right on that count.
The same cannot be said of Speaker Nancy Pelosi. This summer Pelosi single handily destroyed over three decades of U.S. credibility on trade by gutting the “fast track” guarantee key to U.S. Trade Promotion Authority. Since Pelosi killed the U.S. – Colombia FTA, Colombia has since signed free trade deals with both Canada and China. Now those countries goods will automatically be less expensive then similar American goods. As the Wall Street Journal notes: ” If the United Auto Workers thought their Caterpillar exports were losing global ground before, wait until they compete on this not-so-level playing field.”
