Jon S. Corzine: “after serious deliberation, I will be voting against the United States-Dominican Republic Central American Free Trade…”

“after serious deliberation, I will be voting against the United States-Dominican Republic Central American Free Trade Agreement, or CAFTA. While I support the principle of free trade, free trade must also be fair. I have supported our trade agreements with Australia, Jordan, and Morocco because these agreements reduce or eliminate barriers to American exports while preserving and protecting important labor, environmental and security interests around the globe. A trade agreement between the United States and Central America with the same safeguards has the potential to serve as an important tool for promoting development and advancing meaningful socioeconomic reform in the region. That said, the agreement before us takes a significant step back from previous agreements with respect to both labor and environmental protections, and will only exacerbate the outsourcing of American jobs and aggravate an already dangerous world trade imbalance. American workers justifiably feel insecure in today's economy, and the outsourcing of American jobs at home is a major reason. The increasing trade deficit puts an exclamation point on their concerns. I would like to understand how this agreement is not just another in a long line of bad trade agreements that exacerbate our trade problems.…”