Clintons Disagree Over a Free Trade Pact w/Colombia

Clintons Disagree
Over a Free-Trade
Pact With Colombia
By JOHN R. EMSHWILLER and BOB DAVIS
April 9, 2008; Page A4

Mark Penn, who lost his job as chief strategist to the Clinton campaign because of his work for the Colombian government on a controversial trade pact, wasn't her only adviser with such ties. Another is Bill Clinton.

Mr. Clinton supports the pact with Colombia even though his wife opposes it, a Clinton campaign spokesman said Tuesday. President Bush, who also backs the pact, sent it to Congress Monday to push for its passage.

Many Democrats oppose the deal, amid mounting concerns about free trade as well as the murders of trade unionists in Colombia by right-wing paramilitaries. More broadly, economic concerns have made trade pacts -- such as the North American Free Trade Agreement pushed through Congress in the early 1990s by President Clinton -- a hot issue in the Democratic presidential race.

Mr. Penn stepped down from his senior role with the campaign after The Wall Street Journal reported he had met with Colombia's U.S. ambassador over the pact. Mr. Penn is chief executive of Burson-Marsteller Worldwide, a public-relations and lobbying firm hired by Colombia last year to win U.S. approval of a deal.

The Clinton campaign spokesman said Mr. Clinton has been supporting trade preferences for Colombia since 2000. "Like other married couples who disagree on issues from time to time, she disagrees with her husband on this issue," he said.

In June, Mr. Clinton attended a New York gala where he accepted an award from Colombian President Alvaro Uribe, who was in the U.S. lobbying for the trade pact amid mounting opposition. He had recently been snubbed by former Vice President Al Gore, who skipped a conference to avoid sharing a stage with Mr. Uribe.

An Associated Press story about the award ceremony last year quoted Mr. Clinton as saying he went partly because of the debate over the trade deal. Referring to Colombia, Mr. Clinton was quoted as saying, "We need to remember that we are friends."

Mr. Clinton also has participated in meetings with Mr. Uribe and Canadian financier Frank Giustra, who has been a major backer of Mr. Clinton's philanthropic efforts. Mr. Giustra first met Mr. Uribe at a 2005 event hosted by Mr. Clinton, according to a person familiar with the matter. Last year, a Giustra-connected company acquired interests in Colombian oil fields. And in October, Mr. Giustra met with Mr. Uribe in Bogotá to discuss a project to export coal from Colombia.

A spokesman for President Uribe has said Mr. Giustra received the same treatment as other foreign businessmen looking to do business in Colombia. The spokesman said that when the Colombian leader meets with Mr. Clinton, they discuss topics such as foreign-policy and philanthropic issues. Mr. Giustra has said he has never used his relationship with Mr. Clinton to advance his business interests, a position echoed by representatives of the former president.

By tejasmarcos on Apr 9, 05:23 in Friendly Talkzone.