There was a fantastic piece at IBD Editorials on 2/28 addressing the "chest thumping" of Obama and Hillary Clinton regarding the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). There were a couple, actually, one also on 2/29. Go here and here, I recommend them highly.
I'm not going to allow myself to get sidetracked from my main point by pointing out that it was Hillary's husband in 1994 that was the principal proponent of NAFTA. That hypocrisy and the media's seeming lack of interest in it is for another discussion.
What I am going to talk about is the disconnect that exists with the Democrats' attitude on Free Trade (namely, NAFTA) and their concern with "the US's Image in the World."
They seem to be obsessed with world opinion about the US. Yet, they have no problem pulling the plug on Free Trade agreements that are a boon to foreign, developing economies like Mexico. It really goes hand in hand with my earlier gripe about the Contemporary Left's concern for the starving children of the world, yet if they are given the opportunity to upgrade the quality of life of the starving children of the world - through Free Trade and Capitalism - they harrumph.
Add to that paradox, the vacuous words of the Contemporary American Left regarding NAFTA. As with starving children, if they are really concerned about America's image in the world, they wouldn't be jockeying for an opportunity to be the next President to pull the plug on these critical agreements with foreign Nations.
In sum, stop bitching about world poverty and stop bitching about world opinion if you want to pull the plug on Free Trade agreements, Democrats. You can't have it both ways.
