Bernie Sanders calls free trade agreements 'disastrous'

[brentspeak]

http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/article/20111013/NEWS03/111012046/Sanders-calls-free-trade-agreements-disastrous-?odyssey=tab%7Ctopnews%7Ctext%7CFRONTPAGE

Sanders calls free trade agreements 'disastrous'

10:35 AM, Oct. 13, 2011

WASHINGTON — Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., spent nearly an hour on the Senate floor Wednesday, blasting “disastrous” trade deals that ultimately won congressional approval.

snip

“We need to develop trade policies — I know this is a radical idea — that work for working people and not just the CEOs of large corporations,” he said.

snip

But Sanders said the agreements are nothing more than extensions of flawed pacts such as the North American Free Trade Agreement and normalized trade with China, which he said led to the loss of millions of American jobs and thousands of factories across the nation, including Vermont.

snip

More than 50,000 U.S. factories have shut down in the last decade and 5.5 million factory jobs have been lost, he said. Meanwhile, he said multinational corporations have cut 2.9 million American jobs while creating 2.4 million jobs overseas.

[Cali_Democrat]

1. But the US Chamber of Commerce praised Obama and the Republicans for working together

to get these deals through.

The US Chamber of Commerce praised the bipartisanship and said they want Obama and the Republicans to work together and pass more trade deals in the future. They said free trade is fantastic.

Here's some info from Wiki about the US Chamber of Commerce:

The United States Chamber of Commerce (USCC) is an American lobbying group representing the interests of many businesses and trade associations. It is not an agency of the United States government.

The Chamber is staffed with policy specialists, lobbyists and lawyers. Politically, the Chamber is generally considered to be a conservative organization. It usually supports Republican political candidates, though it has occasionally supported conservative Democrats.<1> <2> The Chamber is one of the largest lobbying groups in the U.S., spending more money than any other lobbying organization on a yearly basis.<3><4>

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Chamber_of_Commerce

So who is right? Bernie Sanders or the US Chamber of Commerce?

That's a tough one.

[golfguru]

2. Free trade is not disastrous, UNfair trade is

and most of our trade agreements suck.

[dana_b]

3. thank you Senator

for continuing the fight.

[Tarheel_Dem]

4. Unrec.

:hi:

[walerosco]

10. Any chance you can explain

your unrec?

[NorthCarolina]

11. I think it's safe to assume that the Unrec is due to Sanders being quite Liberal.

Conservatives hate that.

[Jakes Progress]

12. The poster must agree with the republican congress.

They all voted to approve the deals. The Democratic Caucus voted against it.

[Enthusiast]

19. He also likes the 999 tax plan, lol.

[Jakes Progress]

20. DU is getting an awfully big tent.

[bvar22]

5. I agree with Bernie.

K&R



You will know them by their WORKS,
not by their excuses.

Solidarity99!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[totodeinhere]

6. Bernie Sanders is a bona fide national treasure. It's just too bad that there aren't about

99 more of him in the Senate.

[walerosco]

9. K&R

We dont really need 99 of him. We just need a younger, outspoken and a bit for independent of the democratic party Bernie. Too bad age is one that cannot be changed :(

[AzDar]

7. K & R

:kick:

[Autumn]

8. Rec #5

:hi:

[Jakes Progress]

13. I'll take Bernie's interpretation over the whole republican Senate.

Some here think the Democrats are wrong and the republicans are right. Democratic Underwhat?

[Mimosa]

15. Same here, Jake. n/t

[Enthusiast]

18. Me too!

[red dog 1]

14. Too bad Bernie isn't in the Oval Office instead of "Chief Broken Promises"

[woo me with science]

16. Thank you, Bernie.

How pathetic our elections have become when it is one corporate neocon party against the other corporate neocon party.

[Enthusiast]

17. Kicked and recommended! nt