Sunday, July 13, 2008

Template Spinning

We all know the template constantly repeated by the media, Dem pols, and academia: Bush is a unilateralist, engaged in cowboy diplomacy, and only our Lord and Savior Barack Obama can save and repair our relationships with other countries. It's a great talking point that has, because of endless repetition, become accepted as fact despite evidence to the contrary. For example, see the Bush administration's multilateral approach to North Korea, which is criticized by the Left for being, well, multilateral. Or, the most recent example, the Democrats' disturbing oppostition to the free trade agreement with Columbia. All their arguments in opposition, all echoed and embraced by the Transcedent One who will save our tattered reputations with foreign nations, are absurd, if ever articulated at all. But don't take my word for it. Coming in for treatment usually reserved for conservatives, NYT reporter Steven Weisman writes:

If approved by Congress, it would open a new market for American
produce and manufactured goods. Unlike other trade deals, it would not
threaten American jobs, because imports from Colombia are already
coming in nearly duty-free.

And it would have the added benefit of shoring up a respected ally, President Álvaro Uribe,
who has made progress in taming the narcotics traffickers, right-wing
death squads and left-wing guerrillas that had almost made Colombia a
failed state.

In recent months, nearly 100 newspapers in the United States have
endorsed the Colombia trade agreement. So have many top Democrats,
including Mayor Richard M. Daley
of Chicago. And Mr. Uribe, who was already popular in Congress, was
widely lionized after the dramatic rescue of hostages in Colombia on
July 2.

To reiterate: Columbian goods coming to America are already basically tariff free. This deal would help America exports to Columbia enjoy the same privelege. It would reward our most important ally in South America where Chavez, Morales, et al. are pushing an anti-U.S. agenda.
The opposition basically boils down to a complaint about anti-labor violence in Columbia. President Uribe has actually fought to radically decrease this violence, and been very successful. But facts don't matter when you can just repeat that President Bush is a unilateralist who doesn't respect our allies. That doesn't require any critical thinking at all.

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