Rep. Linda Sanchez

Rep. Linda Sanchez’s statement on President Obama’s NAFTA-style U.S. – South Korea Free Trade Agreement, announced yesterday:

“While I share the Administration’s desire to increase our exports around the world, I was hoping my recent meeting with the President would convince him that this agreement needs improvements beyond auto and beef provisions. There are still fundamental flaws in the agreement, particularly with respect to the labor and investment chapters and textile tariff reductions. These provisions send jobs offshore and make it harder for American workers and companies to compete. Without changes to benefit working families in the 39th district of California, I cannot support this agreement.”

The Economic Policy Institute estimates that Obama’s NAFTA-style free trade agreement with Korea could cost 159,000 US jobs over the next five years.