Hillary Clinton had this to say about trade in relation to various trade agreements coming before Congress:
"I have long said that we need smart trade policies that advance labor rights, the environment, and our economic standing in the world.
"I support the trade agreement with Peru. It has very strong labor and environmental protections. This agreement makes meaningful progress on advancing workers' rights, and also levels the playing field for American workers. Most Peruvian goods already enter the U.S. duty free, but our exports to Peru have been subject to tariffs.
"However, I will oppose the pending trade agreements with South Korea, Colombia, and Panama. The South Korean agreement does not create a level playing field for American carmakers. I am very concerned about the history of violence against trade unionists in Colombia. And as long as the head of Panama's National Assembly is a fugitive from justice in America, I cannot support that agreement. Accordingly, I will oppose the trade agreements with these countries.
"We need to vigorously enforce our trade agreements. As President, I will appoint a trade enforcement officer and double the enforcement staff at the office of the United States Trade Representative. I will also systematically review every trade agreement to ensure that it is delivering benefits to American workers. I will also expand the Trade Adjustment Assistance program so that workers negatively affected by the global economy get the help they need. And as President, in my first months in office, I will take a time out from new trade deals to assess their impact before going forward."
(HT to Eyes on Trade).
I take her statement to mean that she feels the U.S.-Peru FTA gets the substance just about right, in terms of balancing traditional trade issues with enforcing labor and environment provisions through trade agreements. (Although she does want to take a "time out" to think through the issues a bit more.)
In addition, she makes clear that there are other factors she will consider as well. First, she wants to make sure that the U.S. negotiates a good deal, and she thinks the U.S.-Korea FTA is not a good deal (because of autos). And second, there are some countries she does not want trade agreements with, based on objections to their non-trade policies or political leaders. Colombia and Panama are two examples; there may be others as well.
Finally, it's also worth noting that she wants to beef up USTR, rather than bring in the Justice Department for enforcement, as suggested by John Edwards.
