Nearly every Republican freshman representative (the vast majority of whom claim to represent the Tea Party), sent a letter to President Obama demanding he submit the Korea, Panama and Columbia free trade agreements to the House of Representatives for ratification. 

In the letter, they declared these agreements would help create jobs and bolster the American economy.  However, nothing could be further from the truth.  Studies done by the U.S. International Trade Commission and the Economic Policy Institute both show that once the full effects of these treaties are realized, the nation will lose more jobs and have a larger trade deficit. 

It’s a simple matter.  Exports help create jobs here, while imports take jobs away.  For individuals who campaigned on promises to bring back American jobs, and end such policy failures as the North American Free Trade Agreement, this is a betrayal of their constituents. 

To have a strong economy and full employment, we need to produce more of what we consume.  Wealth will grow here and stay here instead of being sent to other countries.  Doing so will require finding a way to balance our trade, which these agreements do not. 

More ‘free’ trade agreements in the spirit of NAFTA are counterproductive to getting America back on track.  The past sixteen years of NAFTA should be enough proof of the consequences of these disastrous agreements.  We had a small trade surplus with Mexico in 1993 before signing onto NAFTA. By 2007, 14 years after signing NAFTA, that surplus turned into a $91 billion deficit with Mexico.   

Are we crazy enough to believe pacts with Korea, Panama and Columbia won’t be more of the same?  More profits for multinational corporations, and more job losses for ordinary Americans? 

The cruel reality of ‘free’ trade is that it does not benefit the American worker.  In fact, it encourages our jobs to leave the country in pursuit of lower wage rates, non-existent environmental standards and trade without restrictions. 

Did your representative sign this letter?  Click here to read it and find out(pdf file).

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