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Here's the second in Alexander Cockburn and Jeffrey St. Clair's series as they describe Hillary Clinton's years in Little Rock and her narrow escape from federal charges that would have destroyed her political career for ever. PLUS KEVIN ALEXANDER GRAY on how Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and John Edwards are failing Black America even as they hunt for votes in So uth Carolina's "Black Primary." Get your copy today by subscribing online or calling 1-800-840-3683 Remember contributions to CounterPunch are tax-deductible. Click here to make a donation. If you find our site useful please: Subscribe Now
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Today's Stories August 25 / 26, 2007 Alexander
Cockburn August 24, 2007 Paul
Craig Roberts Greg
Moses William Schroder Alan
Farago Jackie
Corr Jeff
Ballinger Bill
Quigley Dave
Zirin Richard
Rhames Ryan
Haygood Website
of the Day
August 23, 2007 Kathy
Kelly P.
Sainath Ron
Jacobs Christopher
Brauchli D.K.
Wilson Joshua
Frank Dan
Bacher Brenda
Norrell John
Wright David
Vest Website
of the Day
August 22, 2007 Norman
Finkelstein Marc
Levy Lawrence
R. Velvel Ray
McGovern Norman
Solomon John
Walsh Michael
Dickinson William
S. Lind Bill
Hatch Kenneth
E. Foster and John Joe Amador David
Vest Website
of the Day
Saul
Landau Alan
Farago John
Stauber Phillip
Rizk Debbie
Nathan Binoy
Kampmark Martha
Rosenberg Sunsara
Taylor Website
of the Day
August 20, 2007 Paul
Craig Roberts Uri
Avnery Rannie
Amiri John
Ross Harvey
Wasserman Robert
Billyard Dave
Lindorff James
Rothenberg David
"DC" Larson Website
of the Day August 18 / 19, 2007 Alexander
Cockburn Saul
Landau Ralph
Nader Patrick
Cockburn Robert
Fantina Robert
S. Eshelman P.
Sainath Dave
Lindorff Anthony
DiMaggio Fred
Gardner Ron
Jacobs Tom
Turnipseed Paul
Krassner Ben
Tripp Andrew
Wimmer Nancy
Oden N.D.
Jayaprakash Rick
Smith Missy
Beattie Poets'
Basement Website
of the Weekend
Joanne
Mariner Paul
Craig Roberts Shepherd
Bliss Dave
Lindorff John
Muthyala Patrick
Cockburn Sherwood
Ross Phil
Doe David
Michael Green Website
of the Day
Jonathan
Cook Christopher
Brauchli Norman
Solomon Lee
Sustar / George
Bisharat Binoy
Kampmark Evelyn
Pringle Hugo
Blanco Website
of the Day
August 15, 2007 Paul
Craig Roberts Michael
Neumann Jordan
Flaherty Sonja
Karkar Felice
Pace Joshua
Frank Dave
Lindorff Carla
Blank David
Vest Harvey
Wasserman Peter
Rost, M.D. Russell
Mokhiber Website
of the Day
August 14, 2007 Paul
de Rooij Winslow
T. Wheeler David
Rosen Gary
Leupp Clifton
Ross Muhammad
Idress Ahmad Jacquelyn
Godin Uri
Avnery Ramzy
Baroud James
McEnteer Website
of the Day
August 13, 2007 Jeremy
Scahill F.
William Engdahl Alexander
Cockburn Kathy
Kelly Chris
Floyd Paul
Craig Roberts William
Blum Kenneth
Couesbouc Rannie
Amiri Brenda
Norrell Fran
Shor Ron
Jacobs Website
of the Day
August 11 / 12, 2007 Alexander
Cockburn Stan
Goff Ralph
Nader Vijay
Prashad Greg
Moses Alan
Farago Patrick
Cockburn Ben
Tripp Robert
Fantina John
Ross Seth
Sandronsky Paul
Krassner Website
of the Weekend
August 10, 2007 Paul
Craig Roberts Stan
Goff Marjorie
Cohn Saul
Landau Chris
Floyd Daniel
Ellsberg Anthony
Papa Farzana
Versey Sgt.
Kevin Benderman Nuri
Nuri Website
of the Day
August 9, 2007 Stan
Goff Paul
Craig Roberts Alan
Farago William
S. Lind Doug
Giebel Harvey
Wasserman Jacob
Hill Raul
Zibechi Dave
Zirin Website
of the Day
August 8, 2007 Andy
Worthington Jeff
Halper Greg
Moses Nurit
Peled-Elhanan Sukant
Chandan Robert
Fisk George
H. Strauss D.K.
Wilson Bill
Day Tim
Campbell Website
of the Day
August 7, 2007 Patrick
Cockburn Andy
Worthington Kathy
Kelly Stan
Cox Sonja
Karkar Sen.
Russ Feingold Alan
Farago Norman
Solomon Binoy
Kampmark Dave
Lindorff John
Stauber Website
of the Day August 6, 2007 Bill
Quigley Kathy
Rentenbach Uri
Avnery Col.
Dan Smith Ralph
Nader James
Neshewat D.K.
Wilson Greg
Moses Fidel
Castro Mike
Whitney
August 4 / 5, 2007 Alexander
Cockburn Peter
Linebaugh Saul
Landau Alan
Farago Dave
Zirin Barucha
Calamity Peller Anthony
DiMaggio Dave
Lindorff Fred
Gardner Nicola
Nasser Benjamin
Dangl Rannie
Amiri Daniel
Gross Sherwood
Ross Manuel
Garcia, Jr Missy
Beattie Ron
Jacobs Website
of the Weekend
August 3, 2007 Gabriel
Matthew Schivone Jonathan
Cook Patrick
Cockburn Little
Steven Van Zandt Christopher
Brauchli D.
K. Wilson Linda
Ford and Ira Glunts Kelly
Overton Monica
Benderman Manuel
Garcia, Jr. Website
of the Day
August 2, 2007 Paul
Craig Roberts Stanley Heller Eric
Ruder Robert
Fantina Alan
Farago Chris
Floyd Franklin
Lamb Sen.
Russ Feingold Anthony
Papa Norman
Solomon Website
of the Day
August 1, 2007 Debbie Nathan Fred
Gardner Gary
Leupp David
Rosen Winston
Warfield Daniel
McBride Glen
Ford Thomas
P. Healy John
V. Whitbeck David
Krieger Website
of the Day
July 31, 2007 Kathy
Kelly Clancy Sigal Paul Krassner Joe
DeRaymond Diane
Christian Chris
Floyd Ramzy
Baroud Alan
Farago Fidel
Castro Dan
Bacher
July 30, 2007 Marjorie Cohn: Independent Counsel Time Patrick Cockburn Peter Quinn Uri Avnery John Ross Ron
Jacobs David
Vest Jeffrey
St. Clair Website
of the Day
July 28 / 29, 2007 Alexander
Cockburn Ralph
Nader Robert
Fantina Fred
Gardner
July 27, 2007 John
Ross Arthur
Neslen Dave
Lindorff Julene
Blair Christopher
Brauchli Jesse
Hagopian Charles
Modiano Bill
Day Walter
Brasch M.D.
Mitchell Website
of the Day
July 26, 2007 Kathleen
Christison Andy
Worthington Clancy
Chassay Marjorie
Cohn Susie
Day David
Price Marie
Trigona Norman
Solomon William
S. Lind Natsu
Saito John
Stauber Website
of the Day
July 25, 2007 Andy
Worthington Gary
Leupp Ray
McGovern Dr.
Susan Block Joshua
Frank Tina
Richards Ben
Terrall Farzana
Versey Mohammad
Ali Salih Laura
Carlsen Ron
Jacobs Sunsara
Taylor Website
of the Day
Saul
Landau Kathy
Kelly Russell
Mokhiber M.
Shahid Alam Patrick
Cockburn and Anne Penketh Dave
Lindorff Binoy
Kampmark Richard
Neville Cindy
Sheehan Evelyn
Pringle Norman
Solomon CP
Newswire Website
of the Day
July 23, 2007 Andy
Worthington Uri
Avnery Patrick
Cockburn Sousan
Hammad John
Walsh Harvey
Wasserman Martha
Rosenberg Collin Baber
Reza
Fiyouzat Stephen
Lendman Website
of the Day
July 21 / 22, 2007 Alexander
Cockburn Werther Ralph
Nader David
Keen Fred
Gardner Gary
Leupp Robert
Fantina Saker Rannie
Amiri Mike
Whitney Dr.
Susan Rosenthal, MD Monica
Benderman Dan
Bacher Michael
Baney Missy
Beattie Ron
Jacobs Adam
Engel Thomas
Naylor Poets'
Basement Website
of the Weekend
July 20, 2007 Eliza
Szabo Pam
Martens Alan
Farago Harvey
Wasserman Marjorie
Cohn Dave
Zirin Anthony
DiMaggio Scott
Liebertz Linn
Washington, Jr. Bill
Piper / Anthony Papa Ramzy
Baroud Website
of the Day
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Weekend
Edition The Future of Three NationsExtending NAFTA's ReachBy LAURA CARLSEN Beyond the vague feel-good rhetoric about a "prosperous neighborhood" and "common commitments" the Canadian, U.S., and Mexican leaders each seemed to have his particular agenda. Canada fears another economically disastrous border closing like the one following the 2001 terrorist attacks and wants to assure it doesn't happen again. Bush emphasized the corporate wish-list of eliminating remaining barriers and harmonizing regulations. Calderon fears that Mexico is losing its NAFTA edge in the U.S. market and called for forming a regional trade bloc to compete with other regions of the world. No joint policy decisions or objectives were announced. No wonder the public's confused.
The Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP) was launched in Waco, Texas in March 2005. The heads of state of the three NAFTA countries, other government officials, and business groups have met periodically to hammer out agreements to speed up integration and increase security. This has been done with almost no public input or Congressional oversight. Since the SPP is not a law or a treaty or even a signed agreement, there are no formal mechanisms of accountability built in. It is essentially a "gentleman's agreement" between the executive branches and major corporations in the three nations. This is what has people worried. Largely unknown to the public, the SPP has spawned numerous working groups, reports, and recommendations. In 2006, the private sector was brought in with the formation of the North American Competitiveness Council (NACC). This body is made up of business representatives from industries involved in intercontinental trade and investment, including Wal-Mart, Lockheed Martin, the Mexican Foreign Trade Council, Canada's Suncor Energy, and others. The Council does not include representatives of labor, environmental, or civil society organizations. Government officials have justified the secrecy by stating that the SPP is merely a forum for refining rules and standards for transborder transactions. However, the little that is known about it reveals that some major issues are on the table. Many of those go way beyond what was passed by North American legislatures under NAFTA. They include extraterritorial rights over natural resources, extension of the Bush administration's vastly unpopular counter-terrorism agenda to Canada and Mexico, liberalization of financial services, and most likely a billion-dollar counternarcotics aid package to Mexico. Although rarely identified as such, some SPP recommendations have already popped up in policies and regulation reforms. These include accelerating environmentally damaging oil production in Mexico and Canada, and "harmonizing" national standards so they sing to the tune of corporate profits rather than consumer protection. For example, Canada has agreed to raise the amount of pesticide residues allowed in some foods and Mexico has adopted a counter-terrorism law that contradicts its own foreign policy principles. In the United States, proposed highway construction to facilitate intercontinental trade has angered environmentalists and local populations and raised questions about what exactly is the overall "vision" that the SPP purports to have. Many of the recommendations of the SPP will have a long-term impact on citizens' lives. While opposition has focused on resource use, consumer norms, and infrastructure, the security component of the partnership may prove to be the most far-reaching of all. The Security and Prosperity Partnership was born in the post-9/11 era, when President Bush sought to extend U.S. counter-terrorism strategies to Mexico and Canada, and Homeland Security became a major player in the trilateral relationship. The counternarcotics proposal falls under the rubric of this new area. The package would include the delivery of U.S. arms and surveillance equipment, sophisticated espionage programs, and training for Mexico's police and army. Although negotiations on security issues have been among the most tightly guarded, immigration crackdowns on Mexico's southern border and Canada's "no-fly" list of people banned from air travel were most likely negotiated in the context of the SPP.
As the SPP extends its purview, the most pressing challenges to trinational integration have been inexplicably left off the agenda. Immigration, which has experienced a two-fold increase since NAFTA, has been discarded as too politically sensitive in the United States to discuss as a regional issue-despite the fact that integration processes in other parts of the world have recognized that labor flows are a central issue of regional integration. Calderon reportedly expressed concern over harsh new employer sanctions in the United States and the "void" left in the immigration law following the recent failure of the U.S. Congress to pass reforms that effectively deal with the estimated 12 million undocumented U.S. residents. However, no mention was made of measures to reduce deaths and human rights violations on the shared U.S.-Mexico border, provide compensation funds to Mexico's displaced sectors, or regularize Mexican immigrants in U.S. communities. Another taboo subject was the total elimination of tariffs on corn and beans in Mexico, slated for January of 2008 under NAFTA's agricultural chapter. Mexican small farmers have demanded renegotiation of the chapter, charging it will drive them out of business and increase out-migration. But according to government representatives, the three governments decided not to take up the issue in Montebello. Nor did those driving the latest stage of regional integration deign to deal with urgent matters such as the impact of NAFTA on job loss and job quality in the United States, or the growing monopolistic control of production and markets exercised by transnational corporations-a subject understandably off the table of a "competitiveness council" led by global market gobblers like Wal-Mart.
Citizen groups have mobilized in all three countries to demand information and protest the priorities of "deep integration" designed in the upper spheres of commerce and government. Canadian citizen groups on hand to protest the summit proceedings were met with tear gas, pepper spray, and police provocateurs. Elected representatives have also objected to the secrecy of the SPP. In May the Mexican legislature passed a resolution that requires President Calderon to send the Senate a detailed report on all agreements that government officials have assumed in SPP working groups. The U.S. House of Representatives approved an amendment that prohibits the use of Department of Transportation funds in SPP working groups until the Congress has reviewed and assessed the SPP agenda. Although this amendment was rejected in the Senate, several more anti-SPP resolutions have been presented. A motion that calls for public consultations on the SPP has been tabled in the Canadian Parliament. The United States, Canada, and Mexico trade a total of $883 billion under NAFTA. The three nations clearly need mechanisms to assure that these flows are safe, orderly, and mutually beneficial. The SPP, however, has surreptitiously proceeded well beyond the regulatory mandate into areas that threaten the sovereignty of the three nations and will have long-term effects on the lives of their citizens. This has happened not only without citizen participation, but also in many cases without citizens' knowledge. Trilateral decisions that affect entire populations should be open to the public and subject to citizen review. The priority should always be placed on increasing the long-term well-being of the people. As democracies we cannot allow the course of North American integration to be dictated by a closed group of corporate and cabinet representatives. At stake is the future of our three nations, and the continent we share. Laura Carlsen is the director of the Americas Program
at www.americaspolicy.org
in Mexico City, where she has been a writer and political analyst
for more than two decades.
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