Andrew Duck For Congress Committee
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 8, 2005
Last week, President Bush signed into law the Central America Free Trade Agreement. Roscoe Bartlett had repeatedly objected to CAFTA's provisions that erode American sovereignty. But after months of stating that he opposed CAFTA, Roscoe Bartlett voted for the bill, which passed the House by only two votes. The provisions that reduced American sovereignty remained in the bill. The voters of the Sixth District are owed an explanation for Mr. Bartlett's changed position on this issue.
CAFTA is a bad deal. It is a bad deal for workers in America, and will result in more American jobs being shipped overseas. It is a bad deal for Central America, as industries that pollute the environment will now have unrestricted access to American markets, while they do not have to provide any control over their hazardous wastes. And it is a bad deal for Maryland, because our laws will now be subject to review by foreign judges.
Yes, hidden in CAFTA is a provision for an international panel of judges to review and over-rule laws passed by the State of Maryland. Roscoe Bartlett knew about this provision, and said it was wrong. Twenty-eight states successfully opted out of those provisions, but when the State of Maryland passed a state law to opt out, the U.S. Trade Representative refused to add Maryland to the list of states exempted. And when the chips were down, Mr. Bartlett voted for a bill that violates our sovereignty.
Mr. Bartlett's website attempts to explain this vote saying "the benefits from CAFTA outweigh sovereignty concerns that I expressed." He then goes on to state that the trade between the U.S. and CAFTA nations is over $33 Billion. This is a curious statement from a man who proudly carries the Constitution in his pocket and has pledged to defend the Constitution.
My question for Mr. Bartlett is, "How many dollars is our sovereignty worth?"
