United States: The Biggest Trade Votes in Over a Decade

The Biggest Trade Votes in Over a Decade

The biggest package of pro-Wall Street, anti-worker trade agreements in over a decade will be voted upon this Wednesday. We need you to contact Congress once more and tell them you've had enough.

The backers of the Korea, Panama and Colombia Free Trade Agreements have been shamelessly and dishonestly promoting them as job creation plans — but you and I know better. Nearly two decades of lived experience under NAFTA, not to mention the federal government's own studies, shows that these pacts will become significant job-killers if enacted. Each of these three trade deals is about corporate greed, plain and simple.

The Korea Free Trade Agreement is the biggest trade deal of its type since NAFTA, and is expected to offshore a huge number of good-paying American jobs if enacted. The Panama Free Trade Agreement would make it harder for the United States to crack down on money launderers and tax evaders. The Colombia Free Trade Agreement is with a country where more trade unionists have been assassinated in recent years than in the rest of the world combine, and would certainly serve to worsen the ongoing human rights catastrophe in Colombia if it moves forward.

These God-awful policies pose the most clear-cut question out there as to whether or not our elected officials have received the message that we want them to stand with the 99% of hard-working people in this country and around the world, rather than just with corporate elites. In this last day before the votes, it's is up to us to ensure that our Members of Congress get that message Too many Americans are unemployed, underemployed and underpaid for us to sit back and watch as our representatives in government side once again with the deep-pocketed offshorers, tax evaders and Wall Street executives.

You can make a difference for the economy, for human rights and for the environment by taking these two crucially-important actions right now:

1.) Call your U.S. Representative now at 1-800-718-1008. When prompted, dial in your zip code and you'll be connected to your Representative's office. Say, "I'm calling to urge my Congressperson to oppose the Korea, Panama and Colombia Free Trade Agreements."

2.) Send an email to your Senators and the President through our online form telling them you want them to oppose the Korea, Panama and Colombia Free Trade Agreements.

The effects of these trade votes will be with us for a very long time to come. When you look beyond all the inside-the-beltway bull, it's clear that approving these deficit-expanding policies would further devastate an already-bleeding economy here at home, while encouraging the race to the bottom abroad.

No more excuses. It's time for individual Members of Congress to decide which side they're on. Please urge them to side with the 99% by calling 1-800-718-1008 and writing now. Another day, and it could be too late.

In solidarity,

Arthur Stamoulis
CITIZENS TRADE CAMPAIGN

ENDS

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