William Krist's Blog, page 60

CAFTA-DR Notches 10-Year Record of Success

By John Murphy and Zachary Busch On August 2, 2005, implementing legislation for the Dominican Republic-Central America-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR) was signed into law after a tough fight in Congress. With a ten-year track record to survey, what can be said about the results of this seven-nation trade agreement? In addition to the United States, CAFTA-DR’s […]

Policy Elites and Trade

As soon as tomorrow, the Obama Administration may conclude the final round of negotiations for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). These negotiations are taking place at time when free trade has gotten more attention than at any time since the passage of NAFTA. To better understand this environment, on behalf of WITA, Brunswick Insight conducted a survey […]

The Trans Pacific Partnership negotiations: time to go for the gold

By: William KristOn Tuesday, July 28, trade ministers from 12 countries will begin a four- to seven-day meeting in Hawaii to try to wrap up negotiations on the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). If successful, the TPP would create a free trade area between the U.S., Japan, Canada, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, Brunei Darussalam, Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, Chile, […]

Boost Support for TPP by Rethinking ISDS

President Obama’s approach to trade policy has not been particularly adroit. After running for office as a protectionist, he later decided to support freer trade, but never found a way to explain that shift to most of the Democratic Party. Passage of trade promotion authority (TPA) under difficult circumstances allows the administration to conclude the […]

What Obama’s Trade Agenda Means for the Rest of the World

The Trans Pacific Partnership has the potential of restoring positive momentum to  the world trading system. Negotiations for a massive trade deal involving countries accounting for nearly half of the world’s economic activity are expected to wrap up in Maui at the end of this month, where trade ministers from 12 Pacific Rim countries will […]

A Primer on the Greek Crisis: The Things You Need to Know From the Start Until Now

1) How did Greece get into such trouble? Greece from the mid-1990s until last year was constantly spending more than it was collecting in tax revenues. For most of this time, the country’s initially reported numbers showed small differences that were subsequently found to have been much larger. The revisions tended to be most substantial […]

House Approves TPA; Re-Vote on TAA Expected After Initial Rejection

House Approves TPA; Re-Vote on TAA Expected After Initial Rejection In a dramatic and confusing set of events on the House floor, members of Congress rejected legislation to renew Trade Adjustment Assistance but then proceeded to approve Trade Promotion Authority by a bipartisan 219-211 vote. Absent an affirmative vote on TAA by the House, the […]

Imports Work for Development and Natural Disaster Recovery

International trade fuels emerging-market development through growing a stable middle class, empowering women, and creating jobs and sustainable economies especially in remote communities and neighborhoods where the concepts of “hope” and “a good future” are rare commodities. The Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) has expanded U.S. imports from emerging markets – 2/3 of the world’s […]

What Would FDR Think of Today’s Trade Debate?

When Franklin Roosevelt became president early in 1933, he not only inherited the economic meltdown left by the previous Republican administration, he also inherited their now-infamous trade policy.  The former Republican chairmen of the Senate Finance and House Ways and Means Committees, Sen. Reed Smoot of Utah and Rep. Willis Hawley of Oregon, favored “protecting” […]

ISDS is All About Fair Play and American Values

From soccer matches in Europe to Monday Night Football in the United States, referees are a critical component of competitive sports, acting as an impartial party that ensures rules are followed by members of both teams. For small and large manufacturers, Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) provisions fill this this critical role of referee, ensuring that […]