Bush Commerce aide scolds Congress on Asian trade
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Congress would be giving China an unrivaled chance to shape the economic future of Asia if lawmakers reject a free trade agreement with South Korea, a top Bush administration trade official said on Monday.
Commerce Undersecretary Chris Padilla scolded Congress, which is run by the opposition Democratic Party, for not holding a hearing on the South Korean agreement since it was signed on June 30, 2007.
"That's inexcusable, and it's no way to treat an ally," Padilla said in a speech at the American Enterprise Institute aimed at turning up the pressure on Congress.
Padilla said the ramifications of rejecting the agreement "go far beyond lost trade opportunities in Korea" by signaling to China and others the United States will stand on the sidelines as Asian trading partners negotiate trade pacts.
"A hesitant, timid and inwardly focused America could give rise to a 'Pax Sinica,' in which China has the opportunity to shape Asia's economic architecture as it would prefer, rather than as we might like," he said.
Although many U.S. farm and business groups strongly support the Korea agreement, it has faced strong pockets of opposition since the day it was concluded.
Auto-state lawmakers -- with support from House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a California Democrat -- have called for changes in the pact's auto provisions, which they say favor South Korean automakers too much.
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, a Montana Democrat, and other cattle-state lawmakers have demanded South Korea reopen its market to U.S. beef before Congress votes on the pact.
"While important to certain constituencies, these issues are ultimately secondary," Padilla said. "The KORUS FTA would be our largest free trade agreement in more than two decades, adding more than $10 billion to the U.S. economy."
The beef issue has been political dynamite for South Korean President Lee Myung-bak, whose popularity has plummeted since he agreed in April to reopen South Korea's market.
On Monday, Lee dismissed his agriculture, health and education ministers in an effort to restore support for his embattled four-month-old government.
Padilla said he still hoped Congress would vote this year on the South Korean agreement, but accused Pelosi of holding that pact and two others with Colombia and Panama "hostage to election-year politics."
The Bush administration is ready to send the Korean pact to Congress as soon as it gets word that congressional leaders are prepared to move it, Padilla said.
The House Ways and Means Committee held a hearing on the Korea agreement in March 2007, shortly before the deal was struck. But there has been no action in Congress on the pact since it was signed.
The administration suffered an embarrassing setback earlier this year when it sent the Colombian trade deal to Congress and the House voted to delay action on it indefinitely.
Padilla also urged Congress not to pass legislation to punish China for currency policies that many lawmakers believe give Chinese companies an unfair trade advantage.
(Editing by Peter Cooney)
