I strongly disagree with the President's characterization today of NAFTA as a 'success', and with his call on Congress to pass CAFTA this year. These comments are out of touch with American businesses and workers who have been forced to compete on an uneven playing field for years under bad deals like NAFTA.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- The speaker disagrees with the President's view of NAFTA, arguing it harmed businesses and workers with unfair terms.
- In plain terms
- I disagree that NAFTA succeeded; it hurt workers unfairly.
- What can you take from it?
- Evaluate trade agreements by their impact on workers.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- How do you define trade success?
- Who benefits from free trade?
Another view
Some sectors may have benefited from such agreements.
More from Russ Feingold
The Democrats were in the majority in the U.S. Senate when we voted for the Iraq war and passed the U.S. Patriot Act. It's not enough to be in the majority, yo…
Permalink to quote #15 I rise to oppose the Central American Free Trade Agreement, known as CAFTA, the latest expression of the disastrous trade policies of this administration which…
Permalink to quote #17 Some say 'we've got it made ... let's not rock the boat,' but I believe that's exactly how we lost in 2002 and 2004. We won't win by default. We won't win by j…
Permalink to quote #14
Related quotes
I would immediately call the president of Mexico, the president of Canada, to try to amend NAFTA, because I think that we can get labor agreements in that agre…
Barack ObamaBarack Obama quote #44 Racism should be viewed as an intervening variable. You give me a set of conditions and I can produce racism in any society. You give me a different set of con…
William Julius WilsonWilliam Julius Wilson quote #4 Experience has shown that the trade of the East is the key to national wealth and influence.
Chester A. ArthurChester A. Arthur quote #5