The first fleets of Mexican trucks are officially crossing our borders into the U.S., navigating our nation’s highways freely and unsupervised under a provision of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). This unprecedented move, allowed by the current administration, compromises U.S. sovereignty and security; a move even former President Bill Clinton was reluctant to implement.
A NAFTA tribunal ordered the President of the United States in 2001 to allow trucks, originating from Mexico, free access past the 20 mile commercial zone set by, then, President Clinton. The most liberal and most over-turned 9th Circuit Court of Appeals rejected pleas by our unions and other groups to prevent Mexican operated vehicles, which would likely be unacceptable to U.S. safety standards, transporters of illegal immigrants or harboring drug traffickers to cross our border.
This latest move is merely one part of the ruse of NAFTA, which was designed to solely benefit multinational corporations and cede the sovereignty of the United States to a North American Union. This is precisely why Congress must immediately act to repeal NAFTA.
Supporters of NAFTA promised an economic and social utopia both for Mexico and the United States. While labor-intensive jobs would benefit the poor in Mexico and contribute to an economic boom in the country, Mexicans would be less inclined to leave their homes and immigrate to the United States. The United States, in turn, would reap the benefits of leading the high-tech world, increasing exports, adding more jobs to the economy, enjoying lower prices, and establishing a fair balance in trade. This has not been the case.
NAFTA has only benefited multinational corporations who set up operations in Mexico, enjoying cheaper labor costs while our trade deficit has widened. Wages decreased for average workers in Mexico while large corporations continued to reap profits at the expense of the average wage earner. The number of lost American manufacturing jobs, post-NAFTA, is estimated as high as 3.1 million. While economic conditions did not improve for the average worker in Mexico, an estimated more than 7 million illegals have crossed our borders since NAFTA.
Worse than an economic disaster, NAFTA has become a security nightmare for the United States. It is no secret that the best place to sneak into the US undetected is the US-Mexico border. What better way to smuggle terrorists, weapons or drugs into the United States than through a porous border that will continually be understaffed and under-equipped?
NAFTA not only provides terrorists and criminals a safe haven to wreak havoc on our society, it provides a vehicle to force the United States to further loose its sovereignty. NAFTA has already been the springboard for the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America, the NAFTA Superhighway, and the North American Union. All of which are designed to slowly chip away at the sovereignty of the United States.
Should we continue to allow NAFTA tribunals to bully U.S. presidents and determine U.S. foreign policy, the United States of America will not be a sovereign nation under God, but a nation under NAFTA.
Daniel Gilbert is a GOP Candidate for President. For more about him, go to: http://www.wethepeopleforpresident.com
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