Oh please. Democrats controlled both the House and the Senate in 1993. NAFTA didn't even have to come up for a vote if the Democrats didn't want it to.
"And the unions most definitely gave Clinton hell over NAFTA. The only way it passed was that Newt Gingrich and the Republicans voted for it."
No, no, and no.
The unions didn't give Clinton any campaign grief over NAFTA. Newt Gingrinch was in the House, and the House doesn't ratify treaties, and it was a Democratic majority Senate in 1993 that ratified NAFTA.
You are delusionally wrong. A treaty can be ratified EITHER by a two thirds vote of the Senate of by majorites in both houses. Clinton took the latter. NAFTA was endorsed by the entire business community, every editorial page, all surviving ex-presidents, and the full weight of textbook economic theory. Clinton used every bit of arm twisting and jawboning that he could. And still in the House it only passed by 234 to 200 with most Democrats voting against it and all but 43 Republicans voting for it. NAFTA only got 102 Democratic votes in the House. In the Senate it passed by 61 to 38 with only 27 Democratic Senatorial votes. The union based left wing of the Democratic Party did not support NAFTA at all.
This created a score to settle at impeachment time. Clinton was forced, to save his butt, to depend on the Democratic Left and the price of their support was no free trade nonsense.
Oh please. Democrats controlled both the House and the Senate in 1993. NAFTA didn't even have to come up for a vote if the Democrats didn't want it to.