Clock Has Run Out on Fast Track

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, June 28, 2007

CONTACT: Greg Denier or Chris Ortman
(202) 721-0660
chris.ortman@changetowin.org

WASHINGTON, DC – Following is a statement from Greg Tarpinian, Executive Director of Change to Win, on the expiration of Fast Track trade authority on June 30, 2007.

“The end of Fast Track is a first and necessary step toward putting U.S. trade policy on the right track to fair trade deals that create jobs, raise living standards for all workers and restore the American Dream.

“So-called free trade agreements negotiated under Fast Track have resulted in the loss of millions of good American jobs, the spread of sweatshops and child labor throughout the world, environmental degradation, and broken promises to uphold even the minimal labor and human rights standards.

“This Saturday, the clock will run out on Fast Track, and if Congress listens to what working people are saying, the clock will also soon run out on the era of allowing corporations to sell out the American Dream and impose a global race to the bottom.

“There is no way to ‘fix’ Fast Track. The last election demonstrated that the public has had enough of job-killing trade deals that only serve multinational corporations at the expense of working families. “Congress must reassert its constitutional authority to ensure that the benefits of trade are broadly shared, and reject any reauthorization of Fast Track authority, including disapproval of trade deals with Peru and Panama, which still need substantial improvements.”