|
|
||
|
|
Bush & Republicans Expand Corporate Power at the Expense of Our Environment At a time when Americans are demanding increased corporate accountability, Congress instead failed to reject the huge expansion of corporate power embodied in fast-track trade legislation. On Thursday, July 25th, Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT) and Rep. Bill Thomas (R-CA) succeeded in cutting a deal on a final version of this bill. The next day they rushed this dangerous legislation to a vote. Fast Track now paves the way for expansion of provisions in the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) that gives foreign corporations new powers to sue U.S. taxpayers for billions of dollars if our environmental laws interfere with their profits. A Canadian company has already used NAFTA'S corporate lawsuit rules to sue U.S. taxpayers for $1 billion in order to undercut an important California clean water law. Under the new legislation passed by Congress, clean air, forest protection and smart growth laws are next on the chopping block. A Tufts University study says NAFTA's corporate lawsuits could eventually line the pockets of foreign corporations with $32 billion in U.S. taxpayer money every year! The House passed this particularly nasty bit of corporate welfare at 3:30 AM, on July 26th by the slimmest of margins. The vote was heavily partisan, with only a handful of Democrats voting with the Republican majority. This fast-track bill was beat twice before in 1997 and 1998. Insiders feel that if it had failed to garner enough support a third time around we probably would never have seen this form of fast track again. Getting rid of fast track would have fundamentally changed the balance of power on trade policy in this country, tilting the scales decisively toward the House of Representatives - and those whom the House represents - and away from the corporate-dominated office of the United States Trade Representative, a White House agency. The House of Representatives narrowly approved the vote by a razor thin margin of 215-212, and only after a rare lobbying visit to Capitol Hill by President Bush did the House pass the Fast Track Bill, which will prevent Congress from fixing future trade deals even when they threaten the environment. "Now more than ever, Americans want Congress to hold corporations accountable, not give them more breaks," said Carl Pope, Executive Director of the Sierra Club. "The House's capitulation to powerful business interests could jeopardize many of the environmental protections Americans take for granted." Fast Track will allow the Bush Administration to extend NAFTA across the Western Hemisphere. Provisions in NAFTA allow foreign corporations to sue the U.S. government whenever they feel that our environmental protections affect their profits. Already, a Canadian chemical company has used NAFTA to sue the US government for $1 billion, jeopardizing a vital California clean water law. Extending NAFTA will greatly increase the number of these claims, and threaten crucial environmental and public health laws. "Here in California, we fought hard to keep our drinking water safe from dangerous toxic chemicals. But that progress could be undone by NAFTA's corporate-friendly provisions," continued Pope. "Now thanks to the House vote, many more environmental protections across the country could soon be under attack." Rejecting Fast Track would not have limited our ability to enter international trade agreements. It simply would have allowed Congress to weigh in on those agreements, to prevent them from running roughshod over the environment. That safeguard no longer exists. "We can have a trade policy that is clean, green, and fair, but not by handcuffing our elected representatives," added Pope. "The Bush Administration now must take care not to put international trade on a collision course with the need to protect our environment."
|
|
|
|
Enable frames | |
|
home | out/about | events | personal | store | classified | real estate | forums | archives | contact |
||
