International Trade Policies of Campaign 2000
Although international trade policy has not been one of the major points of debate in this year's presidential race, determining the role which the United States will play in the rapidly expanding global market will be a fundamental issue for the next administration. The next president will be forced to deal with a number of important, and in many cases delicate problems, that may change the direction of international trade for the next century. Among these, is the acceptance of China into the World Trade Organization (WTO). The United States has taken a leading role in pushing for the admittance of China into the WTO, but there have been technical problems, preventing the deal from being closed. Of concern also, will be the demands of developing nations, who wish to reach a more equitable trading relationship with the industrialized countries. (Economist) It will be the responsibility of the next president to find working solutions to these dilemmas. The two major party candidates this election cycle are Republican Governor George W. Bush of Texas and Democratic Vice President Al Gore. The two share similar positions within some aspects of foreign trade policy, but differ significantly on others.
The Vice President does support labor and environmental standards for our trading partners, however. Gore insists that his administration will focus on opening the European and Japanese markets to genetically-modified farm products, in addition to fighting against other foreign trade barriers. The governor adheres to the belief that there should be no link between trade policies and labor and environmental standards. His support for the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which created an open market system between Canada, Mexico and the United States, was the key reason it was passed into law on January 1, 1994 (North American Free Trade Agreement). At the next round of WTO meetings, Gore proposes detailed discussions regarding labor and environmental safeguards and ways to deal with nations, potentially involving sanctions, which fail to meet the standards (Voter). He advocates the United States' involvement in working with our trading partners to improve their policies rather than imposing sanctions against them. In a speech to Boeing employees in Everett, Washington, Bush criticized China's policy towards Taiwan, but stated that it imperative to maintain normal trade relations with China in the hopes of opening the country to democratic change. He believes that the entirety of the Western Hemisphere, from Alaska to Cape Horn, should exist with no trade barriers, in essence, incorporating Central and South American nations under NAFTA. Vice President Gore plans to use the WTO as his platform for addressing international trade policies and standards. Governor Bush also advocates "fast-track" legislation. The governor says he would use this power to work on eliminating the trade barriers existent within the Western Hemisphere, while using the WTO to open markets in developing nations and the rest of the world (Fast Track, Bush). He states that labor and environmental policies should not be tied to trade. But while they are similar in many ways, they differ on one key issue: sanctions against countries that fail to comply with international standards.
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