Clinton, Edwards Oppose South Korea Free Trade Deal, "Nothing" from Obama

[wyldwolf]

The Wall Street Journal tells us this morning that Sen. Hillary Clinton has apparently said she would not support the so-called "free trade" deal with South Korea...

... This is certainly a good thing and Clinton should be applauded for, apparently, indicating she will vote against the deal. John Edwards was first to declare that he would oppose the South Korea deal. But, nothing has been heard from Barack Obama, nor the other presidential candidates on the South Korea deal (I'm assuming Kucinich will oppose the deal since he has been the most consistent opponent of so-called "free trade").

People who criticize Sen. Clinton need to recognize when she has taken the right position and applaud her.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jonathan-tasini/hillary-clinton-opposes-s_b_51533.html

(yes, I only quoted the portions key to the story. No, I did not intentionally leave anything out to make anyone look good or bad. If you want to read the entire piece, click the link.)

[ulysses]

1. ok, kudos where deserved.

I wonder, though, who will take this as a sea-change in Hillary's view of "free trade" as a whole. More from the article...

These deals are actually quite intricate managed trade agreements--managed for the interests of large corporations and very rich investors. The underlying dynamic for so-called "free trade" is simple: drive wages down as low as possible and allow maximum protection for capital and investment.

[Solon]

2. This is one area I agree with Clinton 100%...

well, OK, about 80%. I'm glad she has brought up the need to not sign on to new free trade deals and to reevaluate current deals we have with other nations, like NAFTA. She doesn't go as far as Kucinich, but then again, no one is perfect. :)

[Name removed]

3. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[wyldwolf]

4. or, option three, a cite of an op-ed. Sorry - I don't look for multiple accounts of the same story

[wyldwolf]

5. PS. Jonathan Tasini is FAR from a Clinton supporter. LOL!

[Tellurian]

7. I feel your pain..;)

Obama gets a Free Pass from his supporters and you get.. A Lets kill the messenger, response.

[mckeown1128]

10. You are right!!!

Obama does get a free pass from his supporters, because he is against free trade with South Korea. Also, the messenger should be attacked for wrongly accusing another democrat.

[mckeown1128]

9. sorry I wasn't clear YOU are the Clinton supporter...

who has posted a hit pioece

[wyldwolf]

13. so you're saying Tasini wrote a hit piece?

[mckeown1128]

14. yes

[wyldwolf]

15. ok. Thanks for the answer.

[rinsd]

19. See what you get for trusting a "progressive" source w/out verification!

[wyldwolf]

29. yep! Learned my lesson!

[rinsd]

32. I would have likely done the same.

Every morning, I google Hillary to see what news articles are up. Seeing Tasini PRAISE Clinton would have been to much for me to resist!

[illinoisprogressive]

6. lame attempt to smear. better luck next time Wyldie

[wyldwolf]

8. Quoting HuffPo is a "lame attempt to smear." LOL! Coming from someone who can't count.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=3311058&mesg_id=3311135

:rofl:

[zulchzulu]

17. Should we start quoting NewsMax articles about Senator Clinton?

Since you can't stand on the lie posted, perhaps you wouldn't mind others posting lies about your candidate...

Right?

[wyldwolf]

30. Are you comparing HuffPo to NewsMax?

[zulchzulu]

11. "Senator Obama does not support the South Korea free trade agreement"

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/story?id=3070540&page=1

Has Edwards apologized for voting to allow free trade with China yet? I don't see any press releases on the Edwards site...

:rofl:

[mckeown1128]

12. Thank You for posting the truth zulchzulu

I posted a debunking of this huff hit piece earlier but it was magically deleted. Apparently defending ones candidates from blatent miss truths isn't allowed if that candidate is Obama.

[zulchzulu]

16. The truth took about 30 seconds on Google...

You'd think the OP would check that out first before LYING about Obama AGAIN... that's how some of these Clinton supporters operate... it shows a lot about how their candidate will try to be in the primaries, especially when the Plan fizzles...

[rinsd]

18. Oh please, Wyldwolf's mistake was trusting Jonathan Tasini

Who seemed more interested in bomb throwing than fact checking.

" it shows a lot about how their candidate will try to be in the primaries, especially when the Plan fizzles..."

As opposed to threads about Hillary allowing people back to Ground Zero when the air was toxic or that Bill Clinton has a secret plan to become President circumventing 22nd amendment?

Or the breathless reporting on the two Clinton books? Several claims which have already been debunked?

What does that show? Its shows politics are rough and no one is pure as the driven snow no matter how much they pretend to be.

[zulchzulu]

22. So it's OK to post lies and then not perhaps make a statement that...

...you were duped?

I've seen how some people act...post first and check facts later...

[rinsd]

26. Posting lies would assume WW was aware of Obama's position.

And while I am sure WW thought it hilarious that Tasini was attacking Obama and PRAISING Clinton, I doubt he thought Tasini had his facts incorrect.

"I've seen how some people act...post first and check facts later..."

I wish I could muster some sympathy but until you've seen (or perhaps you have) threads about Hillary letting people breathe toxic air at Ground Zero or that Bill Clinton is sneaking around the 22nd amendment threads go to hundreds of replies you just can't play the woe is the Obama supporter card.

This thread? This is a blip that was quickly corrected with the correction accepted.

[mckeown1128]

27. Clinton supporters make a lot of mistakes

that end up looking bad for Edwards and Obama. Besides don't talk for wyldwolf... he/she hasn't retracted this mistake.

[rinsd]

31. WW is welcome to do as he wishes.

But like I said, I doubt he was aware that Tasini was incorrect.

I do find it hilarious that people are demanding an apology from him after all the debunked absolute garbage that gets posted about Clinton.

In reality, your anger should be directed at Jonathan Tasini who at HuffPo is going to get alot more readers than WW here at DU.

"Clinton supporters make a lot of mistakes"

I'll take a mistake vs. outright smears and distortions anyday of the week. Consider yourself blessed that you don't have to deal with some of the crap hurled at Hillary.

[rinsd]

20. It was likely deleted for breaking one fo DU rules.

Could you have inlcuded a personal insult or perhaps and accusation of the OP being on the other side?

"Apparently defending ones candidates from blatent miss truths isn't allowed if that candidate is Obama."

Not at all. You'll even see cross defenders from various supporter groups.

[unlawflcombatnt]

21. Obama does not support it "in its current form"

""Senator Obama does not support the South Korea free trade agreement in its current form," Obama spokesperson Jen Psaki tells ABC News."

That sounds a lot different than simply not supporting it.

Compare that with Edwards statement:

"Edwards' specific objections include his view that the proposed agreement leaves in place a "discriminatory tax" based on engine size, his view that workers in South Korea lack many basic rights, his concern that the agreement creates the possibility of providing free access to the U.S. market for manufacturing imports made with cheap labor in North Korean industrial zones, and his concern that the agreement "opens up American markets to Korean agricultural imports" while not allowing American beef into Korea."

The use of North Korean slave labor in the Gaesong Industrial Park in the demilitarized zone between North & South Korea should be an absolute non-starter for any candidate. These are workers from North Korea who are kept in a fenced off area and used by South Korean business (and potentially American if the trade agreement goes through) that are paid $50/month and work 48-hour workweeks. This comes out to 26-cents/hour. These workers have NO rights whatsoever. There are 750,000 of these essentially slave workers in the Gaesong Industrial Park. They serve as a cheap replacement for South Korean workers, and could also be used as a cheap replacement for American workers if this Korean trade deal goes through.

Opposing it only "in its current form" is not an acceptable position. The deal should be strongly opposed in ANY form by any candidate. The Gaesong labor conditions are nothing short of slavery. Every candidate should oppose this agreement in any form. It's not only exploitation of North Korean workers, it will force American workers to compete with these exploited workers for jobs.

[mckeown1128]

24. Just to let you know that Obama said more...

I guess "accidentally" forgot to post all of Obama's concerns about the trade deal.


"He has serious concerns about the effect that the agreement would have on the American auto, beef, and rice industries, as well as the lack of labor and environmental protections in the agreement."

Hmm...sounds to me like he is not going to support it...unless of course those problems are fixed(which isn't likely.)

I know this must have been an accidental oversight on your part.

[StudentsMustUniteNow]

23. Obama scares me

He seems as though he's being infiltrated by corporate and puke interests.

[mckeown1128]

25. really... who????

or do you just feel that accusation???

[StudentsMustUniteNow]

28. Powell was on MTP last night, also Obama has a great amount of Wall St support

I read a thread earlier that said some neocons were switching to Obama.

[mckeown1128]

33. A bit weak....

Has Obama reached out to any of those neocons who are switching to him???

Meeting with Powell is a good political move because powell (as wrong as he was for the UN BS he spouted) is still popular among moderates. It would be different if he put Powell on his team.

Which Wall St supporters bother you because if you want a candidate who will turn down donations from people who happen work in wall street good luck.

[Hippo_Tron]

34. I'd have to learn more about South Korea's economy before making up my mind on trade with them

In general I'm extremely skeptical of trade deals negotiated by the Bush White House.