FTA Tug-of-War

Last week, U.S. Trade Representative Ronald Kirk testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance and announced that the U.S.-Korea free trade agreement is ready for consideration by Congress. President Obama would like to see a vote on the agreement this spring. Kirk also provided updates on the Panama and Colombia trade agreements, but apparently, that wasn’t enough for some Republican senators.

Over forty Republican senators issued a letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid that stated they would refuse to approve any of the nominees for trade-related executive branch positions until the Colombia and Panama free trade agreements are submitted for Congressional approval and President Obama commits to signing the implementing legislation into law. Executive positions waiting to be approved include replacements for Commerce Secretary and the head of the Commerce Department’s Import Administration. Nominations for officials currently serving appointments as Customs Commissioner, Deputy U.S. Trade Representative and the Bureau of Industry and Security Chief could also be delayed.

Stay tuned to see which side is winning the FTA Tug-of-War!