C060428 Trading Partners

Once upon a time, not long ago, the ability to trade with the huge U.S.
market place was considered a powerful tool in helping to convince
nations to move towards a more democratic society and improve human
rights. Today the U.S. has free trade agreements primarily with countries
that follow those admirable guidelines.

Every non-democratic country wants the most powerful currency in the
world, the U.S. dollar, but usually we have small trade deficits or none at
all with them. Our annual trade deficit is nearing $200 billion with the
largest communist country in the world...China. The long held theory in
the diplomatic world is that nations that trade goods and services reduce
the chances for war between them. Ok fine. We do want to prevent war
with China and we want to trade with the most populated country on the
planet. Trade needs to be thought of differently with China, though.

We are allowing a huge trade deficit with a country strongly under
communist rule and offering limited human rights. We are supplying the
leaders of China with what they treasure most to continue their nation's
booming economic expansion and communist rule, the powerful U.S.
dollar, and hundreds of billions of dollars a year at that.

Our trade policy with China should only offer fair and equal trade that
requires no trade deficit and requires equal trading opportunities and
appropriate currency valuations. We should not continue to assist the
communist rulers of China grow and defend their government with our
weak free trade policies that they often ignore. We should not continue
to view China only as a nation of rice farmers and bicycle riders that
need our help to bring them into the 20th century, but as a major
economic competitor of ours today for oil supplies, a large military arms
exporter, and still a communist ruled country that prefers North Korea,
Cuba, and Iran over free nations.

China is rapidly moving out of the 20th century and we should stop
providing them with the extra money to compete with us as long as they
restrict rights and don't allow free elections. Has the "free traders speak"
of NAFTA become so entrenched in Congress and the White House that
they ignore their responsibilities to our economy and the withheld
freedoms of over 1.5 billion people in China? Has free speech been
completely replaced by free trade in our nations diplomatic policies?

I believe in free trade as an enabler to creating and strengthening
democracies around the world. I agree that we can help poorer nations
employ more people, bring a higher standard of living, save lives, and
that we have a limited responsibility as the world's richest nation to do
these things.

When President Bush recently said he believes that illegal immigrants do
the jobs that Americans won't, we now better understand both the weak
policy of enforcement of our southern border, compliance enforcement
with businesses, and the weak free trade policy with a communist ruled
country. Free trader speak has won in Washington.