Sen. John Thune serves as the chairman of the Senate Republican Policy Committee and ranking member on the Finance Subcommittee on International Trade, Customs and Global Competitiveness.
In November 2006, the United States signed a free-trade agreement with Colombia, paving the way for better access to millions of consumers there. This was a big win for our trade negotiators — and they followed it up with similar agreements with Panama and South Korea in June 2007.
And then — nothing. For the deals to go into effect, the president must officially submit them to Congress for consideration. But Democrats in Congress blocked any possibility of a debate on the agreements until President Barack Obama took office. Now he has refused to send them down Pennsylvania Avenue to Congress. Instead, the White House is insisting that the agreements must include new spending on an expansion of the Trade Adjustment Assistance program.
At a time of budget austerity, programs with new spending should be considered separately and on their own merits — without preconditions.
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