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Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) traveled to Colombia on Tuesday as his campaign released a new advertisement touting his support for a free trade agreement with that country stalled in Congress over Democratic opposition.
In the ad on his campaign’s website, McCain said free trade improves the economies of all nations.
“We must encourage more trade agreements to create more jobs on both sides of the border,” McCain said. “That’s why I’m behind the Colombian free trade agreement.”
McCain will visit Cartagena, Colombia, on July 1 and 2, according to the Colombian embassy.
The AFL-CIO, which opposes the Colombia deal, criticized McCain, and said his support for the trade pact is an “example of how out of touch he is with working families, and how close he is to corporate special interests.”
“Working people have seen bad trade deals send their jobs overseas and decimate their communities, yet McCain enthusiastically supports the proposed U.S.-Colombia free trade agreement and celebrates the effects of NAFTA,” said AFL-CIO President John Sweeney, referring to the North American Free Trade Agreement.
McCain, a top congressional supporter of immigration reform, also said free trade decreases the number of illegal immigrants by improving economies in their home countries.
"With better jobs, more of them will be able to stay in their country,” he said.
But Sweeney said the number of people coming to America illegally from Mexico has doubled since the enactment of NAFTA.
President Bush sent the Colombian free trade agreement to Congress for approval in April, but the deal stalled due to Democratic opposition.
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