There's hope. ;-)
President Barack Obama returns from a weekend visit in Chicago to the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, February 16, 2009. (Jonathan Ernst/Reuters)
Posted on 02/17/2009 7:00:17 PM PST by NormsRevenge
OTTAWA (Reuters) – President Barack Obama said on Tuesday he still wants to reopen the North American Free Trade Agreement, despite a warning from Canada that this would be a mistake, but he said he did not want to end up curbing trade.
In an interview with the Canadian Broadcasting Corp, shortly before his visit to Ottawa on Thursday, Obama also declined to characterize oil from Canada's vast oil sands region as "dirty oil" which should somehow be curtailed.
Obama had alarmed Canada during the Democratic primaries last year when he advocated renegotiating NAFTA, and he reiterated this goal on Tuesday while recognizing these were sensitive economic times.
"As I've said before, NAFTA, the basic framework of the agreement, has environmental and labor protections as side agreements. My argument has always been that we might as well incorporate them into the full agreement so that they're fully enforceable," he said in the interview with CBC television.
However, he also said: "I think there are a lot of sensitivities right now because of the huge decline in world trade."
Obama noted there was $1.5 billion in trade between Canada and the United States every day, adding: "It is not in anybody's interest to see that trade diminish."
When Obama raised the issue of toughening up NAFTA on the campaign trail a year ago, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper said if Washington "made the mistake" of opening the agreement, Ottawa would bring other issues to the table for renegotiation.
Later in the year Harper said Canada's energy exports to the United States would enable it to negotiate from a position of strength.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
There's hope. ;-)
President Barack Obama returns from a weekend visit in Chicago to the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, February 16, 2009. (Jonathan Ernst/Reuters)
Outsourcing has done wonders for our economy so far. Maybe the problem is those last few jobs we have left here. We should outsource those, too. Then our economy will be SUPER-AWESOME!
Obama noted there was $1.5 billion in trade between Canada and the United States every day, adding: “It is not in anybody’s interest to see that trade diminish.”
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Can’t wait ‘til Obama discovers Mexico.
There must be at least $1.5 billion in illicit&illegal drug trade between Mexico and the United States every day, ..
That’s Obama for ya! Pissing off our friends and cozying up to our enemies.
Ping.
Didn’t President Dinky make an election promise to the Canadians about this?
Just askin’.
I am not sure that Obama is STUPID. I know the Americans who voted for Obama were stupid!
I think when push comes to shove...Obama will back down. He has too much Liberal Globalist influence in his cabinet
As for NAFTA, its pretty much a failed program. The US has lost a lot of good jobs, while Mexico is teetering on collapse.
Canada has the most to lose, because the best market to sell to is the USA. But, if they get to snippy they can just go ahead and sell to the EU...good luck.
Though, if Canada was smart...they would get out of NAFTA. The NAFTA deal forces them to sell 65% of their oil to the USA. With the oil they have in their Tar Sands...they could make a killing on the world market.
You will never convince a Liberal Free Trade Globalist that NAFTA was, and is, a bad trade deal. They do not understand the difference between Free Trade [sic] and a Free Market
Obama is too wet behind the ears to remember that the ChiComs have been trying to buy the oil sands for a long time!
You know, honestly I thought NAFTA was a good idea. Still do to some extent. Problem is our overlords would rather do business with Red China than with our neighbors to the south.
I’m ranted-out so I’ll leave it at that for now.
Oh, and the free traitors need not worry, this is all just cheap political theatre on Obama’s part.
Those Tar Sands in Alberta may be the largest proven oil reserve on the planet...I am sure the ChiComs, and a lot of others, would love to get that oil.
Of course, the Saudi’s and Venezuela would go full pantload if Canada put most of the sands on the world market...for it would drop the price of their oil, big time.
I still think, even if the price of oil dropped, Canada would make out ahead if they were not restricted by NAFTA on their oil sales. And, the US could benefit with a lower world price on oil
It's not like those items are going to produce any jobs or energy independence (rolling eyes/extreme sarcasm)
So, he didn't lie to you OR us, he lied to us both.
FYI, the US buys more oil from Canada than any other country. Also, Ontario manufactures more cars and trucks than Michigan, but don't tell anybody.
So we have a HUGE trade imbalance with China, a country that
opposes us politically, but were going to worry about Canada
and Mexico?
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