This is not a game, people

[JohnnyRingo]

175. I didn't pose those pix

They came straight from the presidential library website of GHW Bush. He seems quite proud of his accomplishments, and your attempt to rob him and his son of their efforts is shameless.

Do you still think NAFTA was a democratic idea? That's completely unfounded, and I'd like to know where you found information that Democrats initiated it before Clinton even took the oath. You must think it was Clinton's idea, but as you can see that is totally incorrect:

http://www.mackinac.org/2582

As initially conceived and negotiated, NAFTA included no provisions for labor rights. In 1991, President George Bush told the United States Congress:

Mexico's labor standards are comparable to those in the United States, Europe and other industrialized countries. The Mexican Constitution of 1917, as implemented through various pieces of legislation, provides a comprehensive set of rights and standards for workers in all sectors of Mexico. What have been lacking are budgetary resources to permit effective enforcement of the constitution and legislative measures

Continued here:
http://www.hrw.org/reports/2001/nafta/nafta0401-04.htm

Copyright Lubbock Avalanche-Journal 1996

Texas Gov GW Bush NAFTA position blasted by Teamsters

FORT WORTH (AP) - The Teamsters Union has set its sights on Gov. George W. Bush over his support for lifting a moratorium on Mexican freight trucks in Texas and other southwestern states.

At issue is a provision in the North American Free Trade Agreement that allows Mexican trucks to haul goods anywhere in Texas, Arizona, New Mexico and California.

Under NAFTA, the trucks were to be allowed into the region in December 1995 and anywhere in the United States after 2000.

But implementation was delayed a year ago by the Transportation Department amid concerns that the trucks didn't meet safety and weight requirements.

Transportation Department spokesman Bill Schulz said last week that the United States and Mexico are attempting to reach an agreement on the safety issues, but he was unsure when the moratorium might be lifted.

Nonetheless, the Teamsters have renewed their attack on Bush, saying his support for the provision will destroy Texas jobs and endanger highway safety.

"The reason we're targeting George Bush on this is because he is on record as supporting NAFTA,'' Teamsters spokesman Rand Wilson told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. "And we believe allowing trucks from Mexico in the United States would be a threat to highway safety.''

In half-page advertisements appearing in some Texas newspapers this month, the truckers' union says Mexico's freight trucks are overweight, underinsured and driven by underpaid truckers. The ad includes a photograph of a highway accident with the message "Don't let George W. Bush destroy highway safety and good Texas jobs.''

Link:
http://www.lubbockonline.com/news/120196/bush.htm

April 17 2001

Bush Wants to Expand NAFTA:
In the guise of free trade with Latin and South America, President Bush is preparing to ship more American jobs south of the border in the near future.

Bush is traveling to Quebec this week to promote a plan to create a Western Hemisphere free-trade zone, as well as scheduling meetings earlier with Chile's president, Ricardo Lagos, and with Argentina President Fernando De la Rua on the same subject.

Such a zone would expand NAFTA to include Latin and South America. If Bush has his way, American workers, already reeling from jobs lost to NAFTA, will see more factories close their doors and move south for cheaper labor and to escape the U.S.'s tougher labor laws.

"American workers don't mind competing when the competition is fair," President Ed Hill said, "But the competition must meet the basic standards of worker rights, including freedom of association and the right to bargain."