Profiles in Legislative Courage
Today, in a violation of legislative protocol and pre-existing agreements with the Administration, Nancy Pelosi shepherded through the House a bill designed to put off consideration of the Colombia Free Trade Agreement until after the November elections. According to House Democrats, this is to allow Colombia to address concerns about the harassment of labor organizers by bad people that don’t work for the government so that the bill can eventually pass with a lot more self-congratulatory back-patting.
You’ll likely recall that, about this time last year, the Administration formally signed a Free Trade Agreement with Peru. Shortly thereafter, Democrats came to an agreement with the Administration on labor rights (among other issues) in pending FTAs — including the one with Colombia. Although maligned by anti-free-trade advocates, it paved the way for passage of the Peru FTA last November — with Speaker Pelosi’s and House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charlie Rangel’s “yes” votes.
The deal that worked for Peru isn’t apparently good enough for Colombia, though. Naturally, this has nothing to do with the fact that there is an election this November or that opposing these agreements in stump speeches is basically necessary for turn out Democratic voters or that the agreement itself will likely pass in a bipartisan vote about a week after the Presidential election. Nope, it’s all about the extra-legal harassment of labor organizers. Yup.
One week.



Thursday, April 10, 2008, at 6:35 pm
Was this before or after the Republicans booed Jackie Speier’s speech she gave after being sworn in, where she dared to criticize President Chimpy?