Obama Reverses Campaign Pledge to Renegotiate NAFTA. Democracy Now 8/11/09 1 of 2

[balantz]

Run time: 10:02 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2-itCkAO5YQ   Posted on YouTube: August 11, 2009 By YouTube Member: Views on YouTube: 0   Posted on DU: August 12, 2009 By DU Member: balantz Views on DU: 696

 
President Obama has wrapped up a two-day visit to Mexico for talks with Mexican President Felipe Calderon and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper. The three leaders met in Guadalajara to discuss issues including immigration reform, trade, Mexicos drug war, the crisis in Honduras, and the swine flu outbreak. It was Obamas first official summit under the North American Free Trade Agreement, or NAFTA. On the campaign trail, Obama had promised to open up NAFTA to renegotiations. But hes backed off that pledge since taking office, blaming the global economic meltdown.

Part Two: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=26TlPaQF1CE

[FLAprogressive]

1. K&R

[billyoc]

2. I guess it's okay, as long as that's the only..thing...

[bertman]

3. Yeah. But maybe he should back off on that super-costly health insurance bill too.

After all that could cost a lot of jobs in the health insurance industry.

Edit for spelling.

[Union Yes]

4. What's next Obama? Will you push to outlaw unions?

[waiting for hope]

5. Jobs - what this country needs is JOBS.

How does this help? And blaming the global economic meltdown is a crock of shit - what about our meltdown and high unemployment rates?

[waiting for hope]

6. Kicking for the two that un-rec'd

[ProSense]

7. Twisting the President's words. He did not reverse his position

Obama as a presidential candidate last year expressed a desire to reopen the North American Free Trade Agreement to include enforceable labor and environmental standards in the pact.

Speaking to Hispanic reporters, Obama said he still believed side agreements on labor and environmental protections should be incorporated into the core of the agreement.

"But I will be honest with you: at a time when the economy has been shrinking drastically and trade has been shrinking around the world, at a time when Mexico has suffered a double-digit blow because not only of a declining economy but because of the effects of H1N1 on tourism, we probably want to make the economy more stabilized in the coming months before we have a long discussion around further trade negotiations."

Obama, who departs on Sunday for Mexico for talks Sunday night and Monday, said his top priority at the moment is to make sure the economies of all three nations are strong.

"In terms of refining some of our agreements, that is not where everyone's focus is right now because we are in the middle of a very difficult economic situation," Obama said, while adding that he was still interested in learning where the treaty can be improved.

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