Jane Harman: “Congress debated the North American Free Trade Agreement in 1993, I wrote an op-ed titled ``Not This Treaty, Not Now,''…”

“Congress debated the North American Free Trade Agreement in 1993, I wrote an op-ed titled ``Not This Treaty, Not Now,'' arguing that NAFTA's time had not come, that the U.S. and Canada should require Mexico to meet certain preconditions before agreeing to the trade deal. Over the objections of those who argued NAFTA should be used to leverage reforms in Mexico, it passed without enforceable provisions to protect labor rights or the environment. Supporters of the agreement insisted NAFTA would create millions of good jobs, help stem illegal immigration and raise living standards ``from the Yukon to the Yucatan.'' A decade later, NAFTA's promise is largely unrealized. Environmental conditions in Mexico have worsened, real wages have stagnated, the income disparity between the U.S. and Mexico has widened, and illegal immigration shows no signs of slowing. Clearly, NAFTA is not all that advocates claimed. The broken promises of NAFTA should serve as a warning, and cast doubt on similar claims that the recently negotiated Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) will do what NAFTA has not. Our Central American neighbors have made real economic and political progress in recent years, and the U.S. should work to re-enforce that progress. But as with NAFTA, CAFTA brings together countries with greatly varying labor and environmental standards and enforcement methods.…”