Bush, Uribe say trade deal would boost security

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President George W. Bush urged Democrats on Saturday to set politics aside and approve a free trade deal with Colombia that he said would boost U.S. national security.

"It's very important we get the trade bill out of politics and into the realm of strategic thought," Bush said at a White House event with Colombia's President Alvaro Uribe.

"It's good for our economies and it's in our national security interest," Bush said. "What happens in Colombia can affect life here in the United States."

The White House has been stymied in its effort to persuade the Democratic-controlled Congress to approve the pact almost since the day it was signed in November 2006.

Many Democrats with strong ties to U.S. labor groups want Colombia to do more to stop killings of trade unionists before Congress votes on the pact.

That is the position Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama has taken, despite wide support in the U.S. business community for the agreement.

Now, with lawmakers hoping to finish their work for the year in the coming week, Bush is making one last attempt to persuade them to approve the pact.

That would probably require Congress to return for a "lame duck" session after the November 4 presidential election. But congressional leaders say they have no plans to do that.

Bush is hosting a White House dinner for Uribe on Saturday night. About 140 people are expected to attend including House of Representatives Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel, a New York Democrat, and eight other lawmakers.

Uribe, with the help of more than $5 billion in U.S. aid, has made strides in the government's decades-old battle against the guerrilla insurgency known as the FARC.

Approval of the free trade pact would encourage more foreign investment in Colombia, giving the government greater resources to fight the guerrillas who depend on drug trafficking to fuel their insurgency, Uribe said.

"The more investors come to Colombia, the less difficult for us to defeat terrorists," Uribe said. "Investment is the real alternative to illicit drugs."

Some analysts say the most likely scenario for the trade agreement to be approved is for Obama to be elected and then negotiate a deal with Colombia on labor violence that would allow Democrats to support the pact.

Bush told Uribe he would keep pushing for the agreement in the few months he has left in the White House.

"You've got a strong supporter and after I leave office it's going to be very important for the next president and the next Congress to stand squarely by your side," Bush said.

(Editing by Xavier Briand)