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Saturday, May 20, 2007
“Hell NO!” To More
Unfair Free Trade Deals...
Written
by Stephen Crockett, co-host of
Democratic Talk Radio
It looks like the House
Democratic leadership simply did not get the message in the last
election. Working Americans want no part of more falsely named “free
trade” deals. This is absolutely not an issue where grassroots
Democrats want our elected representatives compromising with the
Republicans. We want an immediate change in direction concerning trade
policy.
Democratic members of
Congress will face primary challengers if they go along with the rape
of the American economy by Corporate forces. Our nation has lost over
3 million manufacturing jobs since Bush seized control of the White
House.
Republicans seem to think
that military power is what makes American the strongest nation in the
world. The fact is that our economy is what makes us the strongest
nation on the planet. It is our economy which makes our large military
possible. If our manufacturing base is not restored quickly, our
nation will eventually cease being militarily dominant.
All so-called “free trade”
agreements passed since NAFTA should be either renegotiated or
repealed. The same applies to NAFTA. If the Democratic leadership does
not adopt this approach, they cannot expect to remain in office much
less in the majority.
Military power alone is
certainly limited in what it can achieve in terms of foreign policy.
The disaster in Iraq should have made that clear to any person with
even half a brain. America cannot rely solely on military power and
remain the greatest nation on the earth.
Our current trade policies
are simply crazy. Middle class Americans are not going to be able to
afford the flood of cheap imported goods without good jobs. The jobs
are flowing to other nations because of decisions made by politicians
and the corporate executives who bought them with campaign donations.
Because our nation is the
last major economic power to have government provided national health
care, our manufacturers are at an extreme disadvantage in trade
competition. We stick our companies with the health care costs of
their employees along with their families. This is an insane position
to be in under so-called “free trade” conditions. We are at an extreme
disadvantage in competition with all the other industrialized nations
because of our health care policies.
Wages rates put us in an
equally bad position concerning trade with poor, Third World nations.
This mania for “free trade” agreements is lowering wage levels for
most citizens. Only the economic elites running corporations are
seeing economic benefits. They are profiting obscenely by
intentionally gutting the economic health of the nation. They are
intentionally destroying the American middle class.
Democratic members of
Congress better get the message immediately. The same message applies
to Congressional Republicans but they are less likely to see the
light.
If the Democratic
leadership does not reverse course and stop playing ball with the
Republicans by trying to pass more unfair “free trade” agreements,
they will be replaced. This writer has always been a militant
supporter of the Democratic Party. I will be actively campaigning
against any Congressional Democrat who does not fight against this
“free trade” mania.
Written by Stephen
Crockett (co-host of Democratic Talk Radio
http://www.DemocraticTalkRadio.com ).
Mail: P.O. Box 283, Earleville, Maryland
21919. Phone: 443-907-2367. Email:
midsouthcm@aol.com .
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