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  • free trade

    Defying All Reality

    President-elect Barack Obama made it pretty clear during his campaign that he did not support free trade, but The Washington Post endorsed him anyway. Still, The Post does hold out hope that Obama will change his mind and support the Colombia Free Trade Agreement. WaPo editorializes today: Democrats in Congress, … More

    An Economist’s Memo to Obama

    Harvard economist Greg Mankiw’s letter to President-elect Barack Obama offers some great suggestions for the next four years: Congratulations, Senator Obama. You ran a good campaign, and you racked up an historic victory. As you get ready for your new responsibilities, let me suggest four ways for you to become … More

    The End of a Free Trade Era?

    If you support free markets, Mary Anastasia O’Grady’s Wall Street Journal op-ed makes for frightening reading: The U.S. hasn’t elected a genuinely protectionist president since Herbert Hoover, and for most of the last 80 years a rough bipartisan consensus has held that free trade is in the American national interest. … More

    Obama Undercuts America’s Relationship With Colombia

    Free trade has been receiving a bad rap lately. Barack Obama’s campaign has come out in full force against free trade. In addition to clumsily saying he would unilaterally renegotiate NAFTA (much to the chagrin of Canada and Mexico), during the third presidential debate Obama voiced opposition to the Colombian … More

    Common Sense Prevails at DHS

    According to USA Today, the Department of Homeland Security “will not meet a 2012 deadline set by Congress to scan the contents of every cargo container headed to U.S. ports.” USA Today also reports: “Two wrongs don’t make a right,” says Frank Vargo of the National Association of Manufacturers. He … More

    Defending Our Allies

    Lost in last Wednesday’s presidential debate was a major slander made by Barack Obama against one of our best allies in the United States. Obama asserted: “The history in Colombia right now is that labor leaders have been targeted for assassination, on a fairly consistent basis, and there have not … More

    A Vital Tool of Georgian Stability

    TBILISI — Speaking on a special panel this morning, jointly hosted by AmCham Georgia and the think tank New Economic School, former Estonian Prime Minister Mart Laar described Georgia as “a victim of success.” Tbilisi’s rapid economic liberalization and determination to integrate into the Euro-Atlantic community through NATO and the … More

    What About Latin America?

    After two Presidential debates it’s becomingly increasingly clear there will be little discussion of U.S.-Latin American relations in the final month. How will the next President handle President Hugo Chavez, the deteriorating U.S. – Venezuelan relationship, and growing ties with Russia and Iran? What about Russian warships headed to the … More

    Morning Bell: A Trade Free Zone

    Barack Obama has frequently called the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) “a bad deal.” During one Democratic primary debate, Obama even said he would unilaterally “use the hammer of a potential opt-out” to “renegotiate” the entire treaty. But after he secured the nomination, Obama changed his tune, admitting that … More

    Trading Our Way Around Recession

    In today’s Washington Post, Peterson Institute for International Economics director C. Fred Bergsten looks at anti-trade rhetoric emanating from the campaign trail and responds: [T]heir tone obscures a major success story: the dramatic improvement in our balance of international trade. This export boom has saved us from recession over the … More