FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 8, 2008
Contact: Alci Maldonado
Phone: 571-276-3109
Action Alert
Colombia Free Trade Agreement –
The Time is Now
On
Monday April 7, 2008, the
President signed a letter to
transmit legislation to Congress
that implements the vital Free
Trade Agreement with Colombia ,
originally signed in November,
2006. The agreement has broad
bi-partisan support among
national leaders who recognize
the economic, security and
geopolitical importance of this
agreement. However, some
politicians in the Democratic
Party are playing politics with
this critical agreement. Now is
not the time to jeopardize our
national security and our
economic interests for political
posturing.
The Time is Now… to bolster our
national security interests in
Latin America . We once again
see authoritarian demagogues and
reactionary socialist-leaning
populists in power in pockets of
Latin America—Hugo Chavez in
Venezuela , Evo Morales in
Bolivia , Daniel Ortega in
Nicaragua and of course Raul
Castro in Cuba . Colombia
remains one of our staunchest
allies in defending and
promoting democracy, free
markets and constitutional rule
of law.
The Time is Now… to level the
playing field and benefit
American businesses. Over 90
percent Colombian imports to the
U.S. now enter duty-free.
However, many U.S. industrial
and consumer goods exported to
Colombia face tariffs of up to
35%; agricultural products have
even higher tariffs. This
agreement reduces tariffs
initially and over time
eliminates them. The Colombia
economy continues to expand and
is attractive to U.S. exporters.
The Time is Now… to support one
of our strongest allies in the
region. Colombia has made great
strides to battle corruption,
advance democratic reforms, and
promote rule of law and
government accountability.
Colombia has been one of America
’s strongest supporters in the
region for some time. Colombia
will benefit from increased
economic growth and additional
foreign investments and new
macro-economic opportunities.
The Time is Now… for Congress to
pass this agreement. Tell your
Member of Congress that we
should not play politics with
such a crucial agreement. The
message is simple—“We support
the Colombia Free Trade
Agreement for its economic and
national security importance to
the United States and we urge
you to approve the agreement”.
The links below help you find
out how to contact your Member
of Congress and Senators. I was
honored to be present when
President Bush signed his
transmittal letter. You can read
President Bush’s comments during
the signing and watch a video by
following this link: President
Bush Discusses Colombia Free
Trade Agreement
The
mission of the Republican
National Hispanic Assembly is to
build a membership organization
to foster the principles of the
Republican Party in the Hispanic
community, provide Hispanic
Americans with a forum to play
an influential role in local,
state, and national Party
activities, increase the number
of Hispanic Republican elected
officials, and create and
maintain a network of Hispanic
Republican leaders.
On
Monday April 7, 2008, the
President signed a letter to
transmit legislation to Congress
that implements the vital Free
Trade Agreement with Colombia ,
originally signed in November,
2006. The agreement has broad
bi-partisan support among
national leaders who recognize
the economic, security and
geopolitical importance of this
agreement. However, some
politicians in the Democratic
Party are playing politics with
this critical agreement. Now is
not the time to jeopardize our
national security and our
economic interests for political
posturing.