Bush defends free-trade agreement with Mexico and Canada
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — President Bush and Mexican President Felipe Calderon strongly defended free trade across North America on Monday, fending off anti-trade remarks that Democrats running for the White House are using to lure working class voters.
Opening a two-day summit with Calderon and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Bush hailed the benefits of cross-border trade despite a rising protectionist sentiment on Capitol Hill. The president said that when he and Calderon were growing up, the border was poor, but today it's prospering.
"Our trade has tripled, and our economies have grown," said Bush, who decided to host the summit in New Orleans to showcase its rebirth following Hurricane Katrina. "This has been a very positive aspect for both our countries."
Calderon was more specific, saying the North American Free Trade Agreement is misunderstood. Launched in 1994, the accord eliminated trade barriers among the United States, Mexico and Canada.
"I stress this issue because recently NAFTA has come under criticism," the Mexican president said. "And I do not believe that people are realizing how many benefits NAFTA has brought, both to the United States and to Mexico."
He said the far-reaching trade deal has led to the creation of hundreds of thousands of jobs on both sides of the border, has offered more choices to consumers and has raised the quality of products.
Sens. Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton, rivals for the Democratic presidential nomination, both have threatened to pull the U.S. out of NAFTA if elected as a means to pressure Canada and Mexico to negotiate more protections for workers and the environment. Bush calls the idea isolationist and reckless.
Clinton, D-N.Y., has made opposition to new trade deals a centerpiece of her campaign and has vowed to at least re-negotiate NAFTA, which has been blamed for moving blue collar jobs to Mexico and elsewhere. Obama, D-Ill., has chided Clinton about NAFTA, saying it was passed while her husband, former President Clinton, was in office.
Recently in Pittsburgh, Clinton told manufacturers and union workers that her husband made mistakes related to NAFTA that she plans to fix. She said she would correct problems that have led to job losses, or would tell Canada and Mexico the United States is pulling out of the agreement.
While Obama and Clinton compete in Tuesday's Democratic primary in Pennsylvania, Bush is using the summit in Louisiana as a stage to not only promote NAFTA, the world's largest trading zone, but push Congress to ratify free trade deals with Panama, South Korea and Colombia. The House recently put off a vote on the Colombia free trade pact, making it less likely that it will be approved this year.
Bush pushed anew for the Colombia deal at a reception of business leaders Monday night.
"I fully understand that this is a tough political vote for some, but it's about time America sets aside petty politics and focuses on doing what's right for the United States of America," he said.
Before his meetings with Calderon and Harper, Bush attended a ceremony to reopen the Mexican consulate in New Orleans. The Mexican government closed the consulate as a cost-saving measure in 2002. In recent years, immigrants from Mexico and across Latin America have worked to rebuild the city, and tens of thousands now live in the New Orleans area.
"Our relations are not just economic in nature," Calderon said. "They also have deep ties of friendship, and I'm sure that we are going to strengthen them even more at this meeting.
"Those links were strengthened on the occasion of the devastating tragedies caused by Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita. At that time the people of Mexico expressed its solidarity to our brothers and sisters in Louisiana. I know that thousands of Mexicans have participated in the reconstruction of New Orleans. I'm very happy today to see New Orleans standing and working."
The summit was held in the city's business district near the French Quarter, but far from areas obliterated by Katrina. White House officials said Bush's decision to host the event in New Orleans shows the city is ready to be the venue for international events. But it's not its first big event. Last year, the city hosted college football championship games, the Mardi Gras and the NBA All-Star Game.
Katrina roared onto land on Aug. 29, 2005, and the Bush administration was criticized widely for its slow response in dealing with what turned out to be the most destructive natural disaster in U.S. history. The monster storm swamped New Orleans, killed hundreds of people across the Gulf Coast, destroyed or damaged more than 200,000 homes and made more than 800,000 people homeless overnight. In New Orleans, a beloved American city, progress is uneven almost 32 months later.
The city is repopulating, the music and restaurant scenes are recovering, the port business has steadily improved and sales tax revenues are near normal. Yet it is still dogged by crime, homelessness and frustrations about the pace of rebuilding efforts.
George Bush with the Canadian Prime Minster yesterday 
Canadian Prime Minster Stephen Harper, US President George W. Bush and Mexican President Felipe Calderón met yesterday at the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America summit, held this year in New Orleans, Louisiana.

The first meeting was between Bush and Calderón. Afterwards, Bush noted that they "had a very long and very good discussion on a variety of issues. U.S. and Mexican relations are very important."

Bush congratulated Calderón. "I want to congratulate you and thank you for your strong leadership," he said.

"We talked about trade, and how trade has been beneficial to both of our countries," continued Bush, describing the meeting before the speech. "When you and I grew up in our respective countries, the border region of Mexico and the United States was very poor. And today when you go down there, there's prosperity on both sides of the border," he said, claiming that the countries had been successful in combating poverty.

Listen to the audio of the speech made by Bush and CalderónMr. Calderón then took over. "Thank you very much, Mr. President. Thank you so much for your hospitality and for a very long and productive discussion we had today. As is fitting for the relationship that Mexico and the United States enjoy, we have been able to discuss a long list of issues today, because we have a very complex and rich relationship."

Later in the day Bush met with Canada's Prime Minister. "I don't know if the people of Canada understand the leadership role you took in Romania, but it was strong and effective," stated Bush in the joint press conference after the meeting.

Later in the press conference, Bush noted that he's "always interested in making sure that, if there's any bilateral tensions or bilateral issues, that I know of them, so that we can work collaboratively to deal with them."

Listen to the audio of the speech made by Bush and Harper
Bush also mentioned other points from the meeting: "We also talked about the importance of trade between Canada and the United States, and Canada and Mexico, and the United States and Mexico. And I assured the Prime Minister that I'm a strong advocate for free trade. I believe it's in our nations' interests that we continue to have a free trade agenda. All of us want to make sure we're treated fairly, and we can do that. And this summit comes at an opportune time to reaffirm the benefits of the trading arrangements between our three nations."

Calderón finished the press conference with, "we the two leaders have some important joint work going on, not just in this continent but around the world, including in Afghanistan. I appreciate your words about Bucharest, and I can tell you our armed forces look very much forward to working in partnership with your people in Kandahar."