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----------From: Ernest Baynard[SMTP:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Sent: Wednesday, November 10, 2004 9:58:00 AM
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: www.AmericansForFairTrade.org Builds Deep National Grassroots Coalition to Oppose CAFTA
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For Immediate Release Contact: Ernest Baynard
November 10, 2004 (202) 409-6289 (mobile)
www.AmericansForFairTrade.org Builds Deep National Grassroots Coalition to Oppose CAFTA
Showdown in Congress on Controversial Trade Deal Likely Next Year
Washington D.C.— In anticipation of the coming fight over the Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA), a broad national grassroots coalition has come together under the banner of www.AmericansForFairTrade.org to call upon Congress to reject the controversial trade deal. The non-profit group plans to continue an aggressive media campaign it began in Congressional Districts across the country several months ago and is ready to fully mobilize its resources prior to a vote in Congress next year.
“In the coming months, Republican and Democratic voters from a wide spectrum of communities, congregations and industries will be telling Congress loud and clear that CAFTA is a bad deal for America,” said Ernest Baynard, Executive Director of www.AmericansForFairTrade.org. “American workers should not be forced to compete with countries that do not respect basic human rights or be forced to see their jobs bartered away by trade deals like CAFTA that offer little or nothing for our economy in return.”
CAFTA seeks to establish a free trade zone with six countries in the Central American region which boast a combined GDP equal to that of New Haven, Connecticut. This proposal, if approved by Congress, would devastate many key sectors of our national economy and endanger thousands of U.S. jobs while increasing the U.S. trade deficit with the region.
The coalition against CAFTA includes producers of textiles, small and medium sized manufacturers, farm organizations, organized labor, commodity groups, religious congregations, faith-based organizations and others.
In July 2004, the Presbyterian Church (USA) issued a statement publicly opposing CAFTA. Also during the past summer, bishops from the Bishops' Secretariat of Central America (SEDAC) and the Chairmen of Domestic and International Policy Committees of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) issued a statement voicing serious concerns about CAFTA.
Recently, seven states that had endorsed CAFTA – Minnesota, Maine, Kansas, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Iowa, and Oregon – withdrew their support citing serious concerns over the impact CAFTA may have on their economic sovereignty.
To learn more about AmericansforFairTrade.org go to www.AmericansForFairTrade.org.
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Ernest C. Baynard IV
(202) 250-5750 (office)
(866) 920-2008 (AmericansforFairTrade.org)
(202) 409-6289 (mobile)
(202) 478-0875 (facsimile)
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