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Article

16 May 2007

Author:
[editorial] Nation [USA]

Dems Sell Out on Trade [USA]

...Democratic and Republican leaders [recently] announce[d] they have fashioned a "historic" bipartisan compromise on trade... [W]e think...the broad coalition of citizens--labor and environmental advocates and others--who want to reform corporate-led globalization [has been sold out]... It's true that the bargain includes strong new language calling for enforceable labor and environmental rights... [But the] claim that this labor/enviro provision will become the template for future trade agreements is bogus... The same claim was made for the labor rights provision in the Jordan trade agreement...in 2000. It didn't change anything. In fact, Jordan has easily evaded what were thought--even by labor activists--to be solid protections... [US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi] should insist that Bush commit himself to the same strong labor/enviro rules for the stalled Doha round of the World Trade Organization negotiations. That would be a real victory.