Trade Issues | |
Protectionists' Tactics Stymie Fast Track |
In their efforts to scuttle free trade pacts between the U.S. and other
nations, labor unions and other protectionists are playing their "human
rights" and "environmental" cards, trade experts contend.
Some 50 academic trade specialists warned that overloading the trade agenda
with divisive new issues could "halt the opening up of world markets."
Moreover, they argue, America might be forced to change its own labor
standards -- abandoning state "right to work" laws, for example
-- to conform to the European approach. On the pollution issue, experts say the protectionists have the cart
before the horse. Princeton economist Gene Grossman explains that pollution
typically arises during early stages of economic development, as it did
in early 19th-century Europe. Later, it declines as economies become rich
enough to afford clean air and water. Some observers are concerned that even if President Clinton gets fast-track
trade authority, he might still allow these divisive issues into any pact
the administration negotiates. Source: Peter Passell, "Loading the Trade Agenda With Divisive Issues
Could Backfire," New York Times, October 9, 1997. |