George Bush did something pretty unusual this week for a President, or any politician for that matter. He gave a strong and eloquent speech Monday on the moral basis for free trade. You won't hear Dick Gephardt or Tom Daschle do that, not in our lifetime. Naturally the Democrats have said this would be dead on arrival unless he agreed to jack up production costs in poor countries by mandating U.S.-style labor and environmental rules. Democrats have coasted for years on a presumption of moral superiority to everyone else, but this is the kind of issue that could be changing that.
Trade creates jobs for the unemployed.
When we negotiate for open markets, we are providing new hope for the world's poor. And when we promote open trade, we are promoting political freedom. Societies that open to commerce across their borders will open to democracy within their borders, not always immediately, and not always smoothly, but in good time. Here is an example of what Mr. Bush is talking about. In famously poor El Salvador, there is a textile and apparel plant on the outskirts of San Salvador called the Hilasal Company.