PELOSI SERVES UP COLOMBIA TO EUROPE

The European Union will sign off on a free-trade agreement with Colombia and its neighbor Peru by June 2009. It's a strong opportunity, because 10 years ago Colombia was a drug-trafficking hellhole with 30,000 murders a year. It's now transformed into a safe country that values rule of law and has attractive emerging markets opening up.

The change didn't come out of nowhere:

• According to the Center for International Policy's Just the Facts database, the United States spent $5.8 billion on military, police, economic and social aid to Colombia from 1996 through 2009.
• Washington trained 37,000 soldiers to become a professional fighting force; the United States lost at least 11 service members in that effort.

How much did Europe contribute? Next to nothing... [snip]

But Europe will now grab our existing markets there, because U.S. companies export virtually the same products to Colombia as Europe: $9 billion in chemicals, auto parts, industrial equipment and capital goods. Europe's goods will sail in duty-free. America's will be saddled with 35 percent tariffs.

[because Pelosi's Unions are hiding behind the sham of 'worker rights' to block competition - again]

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