Trade Vote Won't Be Held Before Election
Central American Agreement Could Have Been Big Campaign Issue

By Paul Blustein
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, May 28, 2004; Page E04

The Bush administration acknowledged yesterday that a congressional vote on a broad free-trade agreement with Central American nations won't be held until after the November election, even as U.S. negotiators announced the completion of a trade deal with Bahrain.

The admission that the White House won't submit the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) for a congressional vote before the election demonstrates the politically charged nature of the trade issue in the campaign season. Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee John F. Kerry has accused President Bush of failing to protect U.S. workers from foreign competition, and voter anxiety about job losses has made even many Republican lawmakers leery of casting a vote for free trade with low-wage countries.

At a news conference yesterday, U.S. Trade Representative Robert B. Zoellick conceded that the administration is planning to seek votes before the election only on two relatively noncontroversial free-trade pacts, with Australia and Morocco. He held out the prospect that CAFTA might be approved in a lame-duck congressional session after the election.

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