House favors US laws in WTO disputes

[MDOLAN <mdolan@citizen.org>]

                                Journal of Commerce
                                Monday, September 29, 1997
                                House favors US laws in WTO
                                disputes
  
                                BY TIM SHORROCK
                                JOURNAL OF COMMERCE STAFF
  
  WASHINGTON -- Opponents of President Clinton's free trade policies won a
  victory last week when the House voted to shield U.S. federal and local laws 
  from
  being threatened by the World Trade Organization.
  
  The 356-64 vote occurred late Thursday on a spending bill amendment 
  sponsored
  by Rep. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and supported by an unusual left-right 
  coalition of
  Democrats and Republicans.
  
  "If I was a proponent of fast track, I would not be happy with the vote I 
  saw
  yesterday," Mr. Sanders said at a press briefing Friday. He said the support 
  for his
  amendment shows there is strong opposition to President Clinton's request 
  for new
  trade negotiating authority, which will be considered by Congress on a fast 
  track
  without amendments.
  
  The Sanders amendment will provide $1 million to the U.S. Trade 
  Representative's
  office to report to Congress and local and state governments every time a 
  foreign
  government initiates an action in the WTO that could force the repeal or
  modification of U.S. laws.
  
  It reflects congressional and public anger at recent attempts by foreign 
  governments
  to challenge local laws, such as a Massachusetts ordinance denying state 
  contracts
  to companies that invest in the military dictatorship of Myanmar, formerly 
  known as
  Burma.
  
  In addition, under the WTO, Venezuela has challenged provisions in the Clean 
  Air
  Act, Mexico has objected to U.S. laws protecting dolphins and Malaysia and
  Indonesia have complained about U.S. environmental restrictions on shrimp 
  imports.
  
  "This amendment is a right to know for the American people," said Rep. Bob 
  Ney,
  R-Ohio. "It is good public policy that has overwhelming support."
  
  "People voting on this are saying there is no compelling reason to give away 
  our
  national sovereignty in the name of global trade," said Rep. Dennis 
  Kucinich,
  D-Ohio. "Last night, the WTO got a vote of no-confidence." Mr. Sanders said 
  state
  and local laws were a key factor in influencing U.S. corporations to pull 
  out of
  South Africa during the period of apartheid. "To lose that right would be 
  absolutely
  unacceptable," he said.
  
  The amendment also requires the USTR to inform Congress and appropriate 
  local
  governments when it enters new negotiations that could force changes in U.S. 
  laws.
  
  ===== Comments by MDOLAN@CITIZEN (MDOLAN) at 9/26/97 6:03 pm
  What a tremendous victory!  Kudos to Bernie Sanders.  It doesn't get much 
  better than that.
  The trade activist networks -- particularly the Free Burma campaign -- are 
  to be commended
  as well.  Word here in DC is that the Commerce Dept folk who cover Hill 
  happenings were
  simply blown away by this unexpected and lopsided vote and scurried back to 
  the White
  House to figure out what happened.
  
  As noted above, this does NOT augur well for the President's "fast track" 
  proposal to
  expand NAFTA and get into all sorts of other so-called "free trade" 
  mischief.
  
  We think it would be perfectly appropriate for YOU to call your 
  Representative on Monday
  at 1-800-765-4440 (the Capitol switchboard) and congratulate him/her for 
  voting in the
  interest of the peoples' right to know and the integrity of our laws and 
  ordinances and, indeed,
  of our democratic decision-making.  Unless they're among the 64 No votes, of 
  course.
  
  
  
  ****************************************************************************
   /s/ Mike Dolan, Field Director, Global Trade Watch, Public Citizen
  
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