South Key to CAFTA Vote; DLC Out of Touch?
As Congress gears up for a vote tonight on the Central American Free Trade Agreement -- with Texas Rep. Tom DeLay promising a win -- the heart of the fight is in the U.S. South. As the Raleigh News & Observer reported on Monday, the region just isn't going for it:
It's notable that two of the three other Republicans who joined Rep. Jones for his press conference yesterday were also from the South: Reps. Ron Paul (R-TX) and Virgil Goode (R-VA). Other Southern states have lots of question marks.
That's odd -- I thought one of the big claims to fame of the rabidly pro-CAFTA Democratic Leadership Council is that they knew the right issues for making inroads into the South. Guess all that time lunching with D.C. lobbyists has put them a little out of touch with public sentiment down here.
The lack of support [for CAFTA] in the GOP-leaning textile belt, the industrial area that stretches across the Piedmont from Virginia to Alabama, is a major reason the administration is having difficulty collecting enough votes in the House for CAFTA to pass.For example, listen to the words of Rep. Walter "Freedom Fries" Jones (R-NC), who -- despite Bush's pro-CAFTA photo op in North Carolina earlier this month -- is standing strong in his anti-corporate trade deal stance:
In a press conference yesterday on Capitol Hill, Third District Representative Walter B. Jones joined Republican Members of Congress to speak out against the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA).The rest of North Carolina's Congressional bipartisan delegation is similarly skeptical. As the N&O reported, "Bush can count on the vote of only one of North Carolina's 13 members of Congress -- Republican Sue Myrick of Charlotte -- to ratify the trade agreement" -- and there's even talk that she's sweating the political fallout.
"CAFTA is not going to help the people of Central America, and it certainly won’t help those American workers who will lose their jobs," Jones said. "If CAFTA becomes the law of the land, this country is setting itself up to become a second-rate manufacturing country."
"The American people are looking to us—Republicans and Democrats—to draw the line in the sand and save American jobs," Jones said.
It's notable that two of the three other Republicans who joined Rep. Jones for his press conference yesterday were also from the South: Reps. Ron Paul (R-TX) and Virgil Goode (R-VA). Other Southern states have lots of question marks.
That's odd -- I thought one of the big claims to fame of the rabidly pro-CAFTA Democratic Leadership Council is that they knew the right issues for making inroads into the South. Guess all that time lunching with D.C. lobbyists has put them a little out of touch with public sentiment down here.
10 Comments:
What happened to old "freedom fries" Rep. Jones? I guess he figured out that he was being played for a sucker. I wish there were more like him in Congress
Freedom Fries Jones is standing proud against CAFTA, the Iraq war, etc. Triangulation. Which, with those vile wretches at the DLC on the scene, ain't too hard.
Trippy but true: Southern Democrats, knowing that their constituents are more conservative than the national Democratic Party generally, will vote make a conservative vote EVEN IF IT'S AGAINST THEIR CONSTITUENTS' WISHES, and rationalize it to themselves by saying that they have to be more conservative to catch up with their constituents.
It's a creepy way to rationalize a vote that actually only helps them with their corporate donors and the centrist pundits.
Rick Perlstein
Unlike the other Southerners, (libertarian) Ron Paul's objection is not on protectionist grounds but has more to do with the encroachment on freedom that may result from implementation of CAFTA. See his statement here.
Great Point. Keep 'em coming.
Excellent column posted today by ex-Nixonite Pat Buchanan that bashes CAFTA available through the www.drudgereport.com miccle column scroll down of columnists. This is the first time I've been to this web site but I'll definitely return. Too busy to choose a blogger identity now--have fun watching CAFTA proceedings tonight...watch for the shennanigans...soon it will be time to "throw the bums out."
One of North Carolina's other Republican congressman caved under pressure and cast the deciding vote to pass CAFTA.
Congressman Richard Hayes is a sellout to his district which is heavily populated by the textile manufacturing industry.
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