Another Free Trade Agreement Will Impact Iowans
by Paul Deaton
Blog for Iowa has covered the South Korea-United States Free Trade Agreement since Colin Powell visited Cedar Rapids, Iowa to help dedicate the Iowa Korean War memorial at Veterans Stadium in early June.
Late Friday, the White House announced that modifications in the free trade agreement have been made and agreed between the parties. Key US concerns have been addressed pertaining to environmental and labor standards, according to the White House.
Back in August, BFIA wrote, “
Proponentsof the Korea-US Free Trade Agreement may get the treaty improved and
ratified by the US Senate. Yes, additional jobs would be off-shored to
South Korea. Yes, South Korean farmers would be impacted by the US
subsidies of corn, soybeans, wheat and cotton as the Mexican farmers
were by NAFTA. Yes, the wealthy would increase their assets. And yes,
those of us in the middle class would feel additional pressure on our way
of life in the post-Reagan era.”
Read this one for yourself. President Obama's statement is here and a fact sheet on the agreement is here. Once you have had a look, think about whether this agreement will be good for jobs and for the middle class. It may be too early to tell, but I stand by my original analysis.
The treaty is expected to be signed by the parties and sent to the United States Senate for ratification.~Paul Deaton is a
native Iowan living in rural Johnson County and weekend editor of
Blog for Iowa. E-mail
Paul Deaton
Blog For Iowa 