Latin Leaders Try to Sway Trade Act (CAFTA Update)

AP News ^ | May 10, 3:36 PM (ET) | MARTIN CRUTSINGER

[Navydog]

WASHINGTON (AP) - Lobbyists for a day, six Latin American presidents are making a rare joint trek to the Capitol, trying to convince U.S. lawmakers that a free trade agreement linking the United States with their countries is in everyone's best interest.

[monkeywrench]

Seen this one?

[monkeywrench]

Good find, Navydog.

[raybbr]

The presidents of the Dominican Republic and the five Central American countries of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua, are expected to expend plenty of shoe leather walking the halls of Congress, with meetings scheduled throughout the day Wednesday in an effort to generate support. Meetings are scheduled with Senate Republican Leader Bill Frist and House Speaker Dennis Hastert as well as key members of both chambers on trade issues.

El Salvador #51, Costa Rica #41, Nicaragua #91, Honduras #114 and Guatemala #122 on the Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index 2004

These are the people we will be opening up our markets to.

[Dog Gone]

CAFTA is a good thing, as every extended thread on the subject here has demonstrated.

[DumpsterDiver]

Here's another one about CAFTA.

Rumsfeld Meets with Six Latin-American Presidents [CAFTA]
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/1401281/posts

[Lobbyist]

We haven't been able to come up with anything comparable to this," said Senate historian Donald Ritchie. "It is unusual for any head of state to lobby Congress, but even more unusual for a half-dozen to do it."

Half (sarcasm) of their citizens are here illegally.Why wouldn't they come up here.

As far as I'm concerned there should be no talk about the agreement until they can keep their people in their own country.

BTW, a Kansas City hospital is paying for an illegal Nicaraguan that is recovering from an accident. His lawyer has blocked efforts to send him back to his country. The bill for his care is now well over $500,000. With $500,000 they could build a hospital in Nicaragua.

[inkling]

CAFTA's a great way to undercut the developing Chavez/Castro/Lula axis.

[Dog Gone]

These are the people we will be opening up our markets to.

Our markets are already open to them. Their markets are closed to us, with up to 30% tariffs on new automobiles from the US sold there.

CAFTA removes that. Only those who don't understand the current situation and the agreement can possibly oppose it, unless they have some specific ox to gore.

[PaineInTheButt]

Cafta Nafta, - As usual, the rich get richer. Wealthy American and Latin American exporters, importers, and manufacturers will get the windfall of benefits. Who else?! The Soverign citizens of the U.S.A. need to wake up. The terrorists behind the scenes in D.C. (republicans and democrats), do not work for us any more. Big international bankers, corporations, and elected-cronies, are taking our country without firing a shot! amen

[hedgetrimmer]

Not yet. Thanks for the ping.

[hedgetrimmer]

trying to convince U.S. lawmakers that a free trade agreement linking the United States with their countries is in everyone's best interest.

Why should they listen to these guys over American citizens. Why isn't our government telling us why these guys think this agreement is so important(hint: they will sink the US economy and raise their own with free money courtesy of the US tax payer).

They also must be very happy about the billion dollar giveaway of tax dollars so our hospitals can keep serving illegals. But once the trade agreement is passed, no one will be illegal any longer, they will just be workers from our trading partners.

[A. Pole]

[...] The administration scored at least a partial victory Monday with the announcement that one prominent textile trade group, the National Council of Textile Organizations, had come out in support of CAFTA [...]

"The administration scored a victory"?!

[A. Pole]

Their markets are closed to us, with up to 30% tariffs on new automobiles

"Closed to you"? Oh, you are in the automobile business? How many cars do you expect to sell over there? What is the catch?

[Dog Gone]

No, I'm not in the automobile business, but I think I benefit to some degree when American businesses are able to sell more products abroad.

Sorry you don't feel the same way.

[raybbr]

Our markets are already open to them. Their markets are closed to us, with up to 30% tariffs on new automobiles from the US sold there.

According the census page we run about 500 to 700 million dollar trade deficit with Honduras every year. And comparable trade deficits with the others named. How many cars do you expect them to buy? How many Hondurans can buy a car period with pay rates as they are?

CAFTA is a good thing, as every extended thread on the subject here has demonstrated.

No such thing has been demonstrated. It has been asserted but since it hasn't happened yet how can you claim it has been demonstrated? Because you say so?

[A. Pole]

No, I'm not in the automobile business, but I think I benefit to some degree when American businesses are able to sell more products abroad.

Why should you benefit from other people's profits? Are you a socialist or what?!

[Dog Gone]

Okay, you're a retard. By your logic it doesn't matter how big a trade deficit we run or whether other nations impose trade barriers against our manufacturers.

So I don't know why you care about trade issues at all.

If you don't understand how everyone benefits from a growing economy and trade output, you are the one who hates capitalism. At a minimum, you don't understand it in the least.

[Dog Gone]

We can argue about who won those previous threads. I don't expect you to concede defeat even though it's patently obvious.

We impose no tariffs on the CAFTA countries. They impose them on us.

CAFTA removes them.

We win.

It's pretty damn obvious except to the people who don't think we should import anything.

[hedgetrimmer]

No, CAFTA is playing to their agenda. You see, the lack of trade barriers with communist countries helps them, the lack of interest in protecting the hemisphere from outside influences like China plays into their hands as well.

There is a whole bunch of people in the international bureacracy and in our federal and state governments that are going to make a boatload of money off this agreement and the integration of the western hemisphere through the FTAA. They care nothing for America.