Mexico Retaliates over NAFTA-U.S. Mexican trucks Restrictions, but is Barack Obama Turning his Back on NAFTA Reforms?

Mexico Retaliates over NAFTA-U.S. Mexican trucks Restrictions, but is Barack Obama Turning his Back on NAFTA Reforms?
By Marc Chamot & Source; Latin Business Chronicle:

According to a pro-Latin, NAFTA and anti-American worker website says Mexico is right to retaliate against the United States for its violation of NAFTA.

“The U.S. Congress decision last week to stop the temporary truck program initiated by the Bush Administration. The decision shattered faint hopes for the expansion of such rights to a larger number of trucks, and terminated a measure that had provided some respite for ongoing bilateral trade tensions, IHS Global Insight analysts Marion Barbel and James Auger said in a commentary today. And under the North American Free-Trade Agreement (NAFTA), truck access on both sides of the border should be fully opened."

LBC also says that, “The economic crisis makes it more urgent than ever to pass free trade agreements that can boost U.S. exports and help companies here save badly-needed jobs.”

Actually, let the burritos fly, because, it’s not true at all. It’s been proven that NAFTA has completely ruined the American industrial sector, and it’s about high time that our government begins thinking American first, rather than fracturing our nation away to accommodate, other petty countries’ economic health/wealth over our own.

So now it looks like Mexico is retaliating over congress’ recent decision to curb Mexican truckers running amuck free into our nation.

Is Mexico Tariffs a Test for Obama? “President Barack Obama is facing a taste of his pre-election threats to redo the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Only this time, it's Mexico that is restricting access for U.S. goods. Unlike Obama's threat, the Mexicans can do this with full backing in NAFTA."

EXPENSIVE RESTRICTIONS, “This move by the U.S. congress is a terrible blow to both Mexico's rights under NAFTA and the U.S. economy as it suffers the crisis. Restricting Mexican trucks free access to the United States costs consumers more than $400 million a year, the U.S. Department of Transportation has estimated."

But there is still that lopsided trade imbalance with Mexico that needs to be rectified:

"Today, as much as 80 percent of U.S.-Mexican trade is transported by truck, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. Last year, U.S. trade with Mexico reached $367.5 billion. Of that Mexico's exports to the United States accounted for $215.9 billion, while our exports to the country reached $151.5 billion.”

Is Barack Obama being two faced and a liar when it comes to NAFTA? All of this because, after a heated campaign where Obama often criticized, John McCain, Colombia and NAFTA which garnered his support from the blue collar workers of America.

FORCING OBAMA'S HAND, “The Mexico tariffs will force Obama to choose between respecting NAFTA and our close ally and pandering to protectionists."

"Obama has ... softened his language on trade since taking office, warning repeatedly against tit-for-tat protectionism in the midst of the economic crisis," the IHS Global Insight analysts say. "His administration has also said that it wants to move forward with bilateral free-trade deals that were previously stalled by Democrats in Congress. At the same time, the administration has run into international controversy over the "Buy American" clause in the fiscal stimulus package.

Its position on free trade thus remains somewhat ambiguous; the current spat with Mexico should give a clearer picture of where it really stands."President Obama has repeatedly stated his opposition against protectionism, as late as Saturday while meeting with Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva."

But, Barack Obama and the Democrats are still pushing the Republican agenda in expanding NAFTA into COLOMBIA AND PANAMA FTA'S “A January 14 report by Reuters says that Obama intends to get the two deals approved by congress. In return for voting to approve the Colombia FTA, Democrats will try to work out a solution with Colombia that resolves concerns about the protection of labor leaders, according to House of Representatives Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel. "The president-elect wants to work with Republicans and Democrats to get those trade agreements moving," he said days before Obama was sworn in as president.”