Taking important steps, but no acceptable Fast Track

Trade news today focused on the Charles Rangel - Sander Levin proposal to make certain limited changes to flawed trade pacts that the Bush administration has already negotiated. You can read the some teasers on the proposal here.

GTW director Lori Wallach had some analysis of the Rangel-Levin proposal:

Trying to ameliorate the problems in a Bush trade agreement is no small task, and from what can be gleaned from the available summary of trade principles released today by Democratic Ways and Means leaders, this proposal takes important steps towards that goal by demanding changes to some of the worst aspects of the Peru and Panama Free Trade Agreements. However, it excludes several serious issues that also must be remedied in these pacts.

But so far, the full proposal being sent to the Bush administration has not been released. Although it was summarized at a Democratic Caucus meeting, Democratic lawmakers did not have an opportunity to discuss the proposal at the meeting, as the session moved quickly to other business after the presentation was concluded.

Given the level of distrust that the American public has for this White House and the passionate opposition among the Democratic base for both Fast Track and President Bush, there is no prospect the new Democratic majority would provide the president with more Fast Track authority - which means in the future there should be no need for trying to limit the damage of Bush NAFTA-style trade agreements.