Time to Ante Up
Everybody has a dog in this fight over Central American free trade.
Under the proposed CAFTA legislation, America intends to cast in bronze the temporary suspension of tariffs negotiated in the Caribbean Basin Initiative. If Congress approves (which is very dicey), Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua will reduce or get rid of tariffs on a bunch of imports, open their governmental monopolies to (mostly U.S.) competition and encourage (mostly U.S.) foreign investment.
Those lobbying for, includes
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, representing a zillion businesses that want to sell goods or manufacture goods in Central America.
The pharmaceutical industry (not one of my poster-causes)
Telecoms and high-tech industries, thirsting for all that cell-phone and computer business.
The National Pork Producers, who would support almost any prospective buyer of link-sausages.
Procter and Gamble, who manufactures nearly everything in the world except cell-phones…