U.S. will lose, not gain, new jobs

The timing of trade votes in Congress was perfect. Just after the defeat of President Obama's American Jobs Act and hours before South Korean President Lee Myung-bak's visit to the United States, both the U.S. House and Senate rammed through three free-trade agreements with Korea, Colombia and Panama that even the traditionally boorish U.S. International Trade Commission said will increase our country's overall trade deficit.

In seemingly equal number to those who touted increased exports while failing to mention increased imports, proponents of the pacts in both the House and Senate repeatedly spoke about the need to pass these agreements to show other countries that we're their friends. But, as the United Steelworkers said in a December statement against the Korea deal, we do not need to inflict further damage to our manufacturing sector and the lives and livelihoods of our workers to prove the strength of our alliances.

We didn't need to hand over thousands of jobs to Korea and surrounding countries like China that will also benefit from the trade pact. We didn't need to reward violence against human-rights activists in Colombia. We didn't need to support banks in Panama that aid U.S. tax-dodgers.

A review of Justice Department records by the congressional newspaper The Hill shows that the three countries' Washington embassies, foreign ministries and trade agencies have spent at least $15 million on lobbying, legal and PR work since the beginning of 2006 to press for passage of the trade agreements. Many members of Congress who voted for these deals used failed free-trade theory instead of its actual results in their desperation to show constituents they were doing something to create jobs.

A majority of voters have shown in polls and demonstrations that procorporate, anti-middle-class policies are sinking working families and local economies. But with last night's votes, a majority in Congress showed how totally out of touch they are by prioritizing presents for presidents over human lives and livelihoods.

JESSICA LETTWEEN

The writer is executive director of the Minnesota Fair Trade Coalition.