Blocking trade deal is blocking jobs

In November 2.006, the United States signed a free-trade agreement with Colombia, paving the way for better access to millions of consumers there.

This was a big win for our trade negotiators and they followed it up with similar agreements with Panama and South Korea in June 2.007.

And then nothing.

For the deals to go into effect, the president must officially submit them to Congress for consideration.

But Democrats in Congress blocked any possibility of a debate on the agreements until President Barack Obama took office.

Now he has refused to send them down Pennsylvania Avenue to Congress.

Instead, the White House is insisting that the agreements must include new spending on an expansion of the Trade Adjustment Assistance program.

At a time of budget austerity, programs with new spending should be considered separately and on their own merits  without preconditions.

For the president to hold trade opportunities hostage to a demand backed by his union base leaves us with nothing but missed opportunities.

Meanwhile, it keeps U.S. employers from expanding their businesses in a way that could lead to more jobs for the workers that the administration claims it wants to help.

On a level playing field, where our products do not face higher tariffs than imports from other countries, U.S. businesses thrive.

Under the Panama agreement, American grain exports are estimated to increase by more than 60 percent, and automobile exports would go up by 43 percent.

Exports to Colombia would increase by almost 14 percent overall, including large increases in machinery, chemical products and agricultural goods.

Exports to South Korea would jump by 25 percent or more as tariffs on U.S. products are eliminated.

Altogether, the U.S. International Trade Commission predicts that these three trade agreements will boost U.S. exports by more than $12 billion.

All that new exporting means new U.S. jobs 70,000 as a result of the South Korea agreement alone.

With our unemployment rate at 9.1 percent, and growth in gross domestic production slowing, Obama’s continued delay damages U.S. workers and our economy.

While the administration pursues its “wait and see” approach to trade, our competitors in the global marketplace have not been standing still.