North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)

advertisement
http://www.historycentral.com/20th/1993.html
Sports
NBA: Chicago Bulls vs. Phoenix Suns Series: 4-2
NCAA Football: Florida State Record: 12-1-0
Heisman Trophy: Charlie Ward, florida state, QB points: 2,310
Stanley Cup: Montreal Canadiens vs. Los Angeles Kings Series: 4-1
Super Bowl XXVII: Dallas Cowboys vs. Buffalo Bills Score: 52-17
World Series: Toronto Blue Jays vs. Philadelphia Phillies Series: 4-2
Popular Music
1. "A Whole New World" ... Peabo Bryson & Regina Belle
2. "Informer" ... Snow
3. "Freak Me" ... Silk
4. "That's the Way Love Goes" ... Janet Jackson
5. "Weak" ... SWV
6. "Can't Help Falling in Love" ... UB40
7. "Dreamlover" ... Mariah Carey
8. "I'd Do Anything for Love" ... Meat Loaf
9. "Again" ... Janet Jackson
10. "Hero" ... Mariah Carey
Popular Movies
1. Jurassic Park
2. The Fugitive
3. The Firm
4. Sleepless in Seattle
5. Aladdin
6. Mrs. Doubtfire
7. Indecent Proposal
8. In the Line of Fire
9. Cliffhanger
10. A Few Good Men
Most Popular Books
Fiction
1."The Bridges of Madison County" ... Robert James Waller
2."The Client" ... John Grisham
3."Slow Waltz at Cedar Bend" ... Robert James Waller
4."Without Remorse" ... Tom Clancey
5."Nightmares and Dreamscapes" ... Stephen King
6."Vanished" ... Danielle Steel
7."Lasher" ... Anne Rice
8."Pleading Guilty" ... Scott Turow
9."Like Water for Chocolate" ... Laura Esquivel
10."The Scorpio Illusion" ... Robert Ludlum
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Nonfiction
1."See I Told You" ... Rush Limbaugh
2."Private Parts" ... Howard Stern
3."Seinlanguage" ... Jerry Seinfeld
4."Embraced by the Light" ... Betty J. Eddie with Curtis Taylor
5."Ageless Body, Timeless Mind" ... Deepak Chopra
6."Stop the Insanity" ... Susan Powter
7."Women Who Run With the Wolves" ... Clarissa Pinkola
8."Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus" ... John Gray
9."The Hidden Life of Dogs" ... Elizabeth Marshall Thomas
10."And If You Play Golf, You're My Friend" ... Harvey Penick with
Bud Sharke
Most Popular Television Shows
1. 60 Minutes (CBS)
2. Home Improvement (ABC)
3. Seinfeld (NBC)
4. Roseanne (ABC)
5. Grace Under Fire (ABC)
6. Coach (ABC)
7. Frasier (NBC)
8. Monday Night Football (ABC)
9. Murphy Brown (CBS)
10. CBS Sunday Night Movie (CBS)
1993 Terrorists Attack World Trade Center In February, a powerful bomb exploded in the World Trade
Center in New York. The explosion killed 7 and injured 1,000. The bombers were fundamental Muslims.
http://1990sflashback.com/1993/Economy.asp
Album of the Year:
Best New Artist:
Best Pop Duo or Group:
The Bodyguard—Original Soundtrack Album, Whitney Houston
Toni Braxton
“A Whole New World” (Theme From Aladdin), Peabo Bryson and Regina
Belle
Best Pop Female Vocal: “I Will Always Love You,” Whitney Houston
Best Pop Male Vocal:
“If I Ever Lose My Faith in You,” Sting
Best Rock Duo or Group: “Livin' on the Edge,” Aerosmith
Best Rock Solo:
“I'd Do Anything for Love” (But I Won't Do That), Meat Loaf
Best Rock Song:
“Runaway Train,”
Record of the Year:
“I Will Always Love You,” Whitney Houston
Song of the Year:
“A Whole New World” (Theme From Aladdin
Top Albums
Are You Gonna Go My Way - Lenny Kravitz
(CD)
Get a Grip - Aerosmith
(CD)
Janet- Janet Jackson
(CD)
Music Box - Mariah Carey
(CD)
Plush - Stone Temple Pilots
(CD)
Ten - Pearl Jam
Billboard Top 10 (Buy CD)
1. Rhythm Is A Dancer - Snap!
2. I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles) - The Proclaimers
3. Bad Boys (from "Cops") - Inner Circle
4. Ditty - Paperboy
5. All That She Wants - Ace Of Base
6. Mr. Wendel - Arrested Development
7. Ordinary World - Duran Duran
8. Informer - Snow
9. Show Me Love - Robin S
10. Whoomp! (There It Is) - Tag Team
Academy Awards
Best Actor:
Tom Hanks: Philadelphia
(VHS) (DVD)
Best Actress:
Holly Hunter: The Piano
(VHS) (DVD)
Best Director:
Steven Spielberg: Schindler's List
(VHS) (DVD)
Best Picture:
Steven Spielberg, Gerald R. Molen, Branko Lustig: Schindler's
List
(VHS) (DVD)
Best Supporting Actor:
Tommy Lee Jones: The Fugitive
(VHS) (DVD)
Best Supporting Actress: Anna Paquin: The Piano
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
) Home Improvement
) 60 Minutes
) Seinfeld
) Roseanne
) Grace under Fire
) These Friends of Mine
) Frasier
) Coach
) NFL Monday Night Football
) Murder She Wrote
) Murphy Brown
) Thunder Alley
) The CBS Sunday Night Movie
) 20/20
) Love & War
) Primetime Live
) Wings
) NYPD Blue
) Homicide: Life on the Street
) Northern Exposure
(VHS) (DVD)
http://www.behindthename.com/top/lists/100us1993.php
Popular names #1 jessica and #2 ashley
http://cns.miis.edu/pubs/reports/wtc93.htm
The February 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center in New York City marked the beginning
of an ugly new phase of terrorism involving the indiscriminate killing of civilians[1]...The World
Trade Center bombing was motivated by the desire to kill as many people as possible. The target
of the bomb plot was the World Trade Center (WTC) complex, a sixteen-acre site in lower
Manhattan... Although the explosion killed six people and injured more than 1,000 [1,042], the
consequences could have been far worse...
This chapter largely refutes the claim that the WTC bombing involved the terrorist use of
chemical weapons. Nevertheless, substantial evidence indicates that Ramzi Yousef, the
mastermind behind the attack, seriously considered employing chemical agents in the WTC
bombing and in subsequent attacks. Examining the motivations and behaviors of terrorists who
would have used a chemical weapon if it was available, but did not for logistical or financial
reasons, may offer important lessons about how to thwart such attacks in the future.
The perpetrators of the WTC bombing turned out to be a group of New Jersey men who had been
suspected of terrorism for more than two years.[2] Yousef attended a terrorist training camp in
Afghanistan, where he honed his skills as an explosives expert. He then traveled around the
world working as a professional terrorist in the name of Islamic Jihad, although expressions of
religious faith or motivation were notably absent from his statements....
The terrorists apparently selected the World Trade Center as a target not because it was a symbol
of Western values or the financial power of the United States, but simply because toppling the
twin towers would enable them to inflict a large number of casualties... Thus, while the
symbolism of the World Trade Center cannot be ignored, it does not fully explain its selection
over other buildings or places occupied by large numbers of people. Physical attributes and
location appear to have been more important. The imposing profile of the twin towers on the
New York skyline lay in clear view from New Jersey, where the bombers assembled their
weapon. Mahmud Abouhalima [one of the perpetrators] also picked up many of the fares for his
car service right across the street from the WTC...
In November 1992, the conspirators started to prepare for an attack on the WTC. It took them
more than two months to acquire the chemicals, assemble the sophisticated urea-nitrate bomb,
and transport it to the designated target...
On February 26, 1993, the terrorists drove a yellow Ford Econoline rental van into the basement
of the WTC and set a timer to detonate the 1,500-pound urea-nitrate bomb. The massive blast
created a cavernous crater 200 feet by 100 feet wide and seven stories deep in the garage of the
World Trade Center... In all, the explosion killed six people, injured more than 1,000 [1,042],
and caused nearly $300 million in property damage...[3]
With any major calamity, conspiracy theories tend to emerge when key details of the case appear
incomplete. A few analysts suggest that Yousef and Ajaj [another of the bombers] were either
Iraqi agents or freelance terrorists employed by Iraqi intelligence to exploit Islamic militants
residing in the United States, as a means of continuing the Persian Gulf War on American
soil...[4] Nevertheless, the theory that the Iraqi government sent Yousef on a mission to avenge
the Gulf War relies too much on circumstantial evidence to create a compelling case...
As Yousef was being flown from Pakistan to the United States to stand trial, he told Secret
Service agent Brian Parr that he would have put sodium cyanide into the WTC bomb if he had
had enough money...[5]
Instead of state sponsorship, a large body of evidence indicates that the WTC conspirators were
“transnational terrorists”—inspired and assisted by several Islamic militant groups operating in
the United States and abroad, but not a formal part of any of them...
In 1995, investigative journalist Steven Emerson noted that federal investigators had identified
links between the WTC bombers and at least five Islamic organizations: the Gama al-Islamiya,
Islamic Jihad, Hamas, the Sudanese National Islamic Front, and al-Fuqrah.[6] He observed that
these groups work together more closely in diaspora communities outside the Middle East
“because they feel they are surrounded by a common enemy: Westerners and their values.”...[7]
Several historical forces created a fertile climate for a loose collection of individuals to act out
their anti-American feelings, even though they were not a part of a formal terrorist organization.
The decade-long struggle in Afghanistan against the Soviet Union created a generation of rebel
warriors who were fervently anti-Israel and anti-American. Both Ramzi Yousef and Eyad Ismoil,
who drove Yousef in the rental van to the WTC garage, claimed to have had relatives killed
during the Persian Gulf War or at the hands of the Israelis.[8] Moreover, the political mood
throughout the Middle East immediately after the Gulf War, particularly in the Palestinian
community, was strongly anti-American...
Osama bin Laden, widely believed to have been the mastermind of the August 1998 attacks on
the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, would seem a natural candidate to support the WTC
bombing, but to date none of the government indictments against him indicate a connection to
the incident.[9]...
Although proof is lacking for the actual use of cyanide in the WTC bomb, much evidence
suggests that the conspirators considered lacing the bomb with poison...
[S]ources suggest that Yousef was motivated by an inchoate mixture of visceral hatred and
personal affirmation, wrapped in a variety of geopolitical rationales. The primary motivation for
the WTC bombing was to kill and injure a large number of Americans. Yousef told Agent Parr
that he intended for the explosion to cause one tower to fall into the other, inflicting 250,000
civilian casualties.[10] Throughout Yousef’s terrorist career in the mid-1990s, he sought to carry
out truly diabolical terrorist acts, all of which he justified by visceral hatred of the United States
because of its support for Israel. Another striking feature of Yousef’s motivations is the absence
of a religious rationale... Yousef’s declared motivation was not religious but rather an antioccupation crusade aimed against Israel and its main supporter, the United States. In contrast,
Ayyad Abouhalima, and Ajaj all expressed religious sentiments during their statements at
sentencing but never admitted any connection to the WTC bombing.[11] Their statements were
more affirmations of faith than rationales for a terrorist attack. Given that several of the
conspirators were followers of Sheikh Omar [Abdul Rahman], Yousef’s lack of religious
justification is conspicuous by its absence. He appears to have been a secular terrorist who
mobilized others by playing on their religious zeal. At the root of the WTC bombers’ intent to
inflict mass casualties was a strong desire to punish, to seek revenge, and to underscore the
dignity of Muslims. In the letter claiming responsibility for the bombing, they stated that their
“action was done in response for the American political, economical, and military support to
Israel, the state of terrorism, and to the rest of the dictator countries in the region.”[12] ...
Yousef justified his terrorism as both punishment and revenge. Since the United States never
learns, he argued, it must be punished. Yousef equated the U.S. punishment inflicted on Libyan
and Iraqi civilians with the punishment he had dispensed: “the United States is applying the
system of collective punishment against Iraq and Libya—when either government makes any
mistake, the United States punishes the people in their entirety for the government’s mistake. We
are reciprocating the treatment.”[13]...
In essence, the terrorists argued that to appreciate the tragedy Palestinians had experienced at the
hands of the Israelis, innocent Americans had to die. The implication of Yousef’s twisted logic
was that as a result of the losses inflicted by terrorism, the American people would come to value
Palestinian lives as much as their own and stop supporting Israel. Yousef also justified terrorism
against U.S. civilians as revenge for what he perceived as a long history of moral transgressions
by the United States... Working with deadly materials with the intent to cripple a global
superpower by killing its people fed Yousef’s view of himself as an expert and a genius.
The World Trade Center bombers proved that determined terrorists can obtain large quantities of
chemicals, mix them into a potent explosive device, and deliver them to a major target,
potentially killing or injuring tens of thousands of people... Yousef’s terrorist crusade appears to
have been driven by a confluence of anti-American and anti-Israeli rage and a significant dose of
ego rather than religious ideology. He had more in common with the famous Latin American
terrorist Carlos the Jackal than he did with the religiously inspired suicide-bombers of Hamas.
Although he drew on the diaspora of militant Islamic fundamentalists, his attempt to inflict mass
casualties in New York City did not stem from religious conviction. Instead, his twisted belief
about how to respond to the plight of the Palestinian people seemed driven by the thrill of being
an explosives expert, killing innocent people, and moving on to practice his brand of terrorism
another day. His exploits as a transnational terrorist affirmed the high opinion he held of himself.
A terrorist who thinks that he is a genius will set the highest goals for practicing his craft. In
Yousef’s case, that meant attempting to kill as many innocent people as possible.
http://www.fdnewyork.com/wtc.asp
The Day The World Shook
Some of the material for this story was taken from the WNYF WTC issue
February 26, 1993. It started like most other days. A 4 A.M. wake up, coffee and a buttered roll
while driving to work at the Manhattan Central Office. At 12:18 P.M., lunch was being served when
we received a call via a street alarm box at the corner of West & Liberty Streets. At the same
time Engine Company 10, whose quarters are across the street from the World Trade Center, called
us via radio and reported a possible transformer vault explosion on West Street near the Trade
Center.
Transformer vault (also called manhole) explosions are fairly common place in Manhattan, especially
during wet weather. They're highly visible and normally generate numerous telephone calls to the
Central Office. We didn't think this one was going to be any different. When Engine 10 advised us
by radio they had a working fire in the Trade Center, we thought the transformer vault was located
within the basement of the complex. Not a routine event, but still,it's only a transformer vault we
thought.
Normally, when a fire or emergency occurs that generates numerous phone calls, the phones stop
ringing once an apparatus arrives. This time the phones never stopped. That was our first hint of a
major catastrophe. Soon the calls were reporting a different condition. Smoke in the towers as far
up as the 33rd floor within the first 3 minutes. The ceiling collapsed in the train station that is
located on the B4 level (4th level below grade) of the complex. At this point we knew it was more
than a vault.
The Manhattan Central Office has 4 positions that are normally used to answer fire phones. There
are 18 incoming phone lines for reporting fires or emergencies. For the next6 hours those lines rang
continuously. Since calls were being received faster than we could answer them, the 911 operators
were told to send the calls to any borough that had an available phone line. Very quickly all 5
borough Central Offices were being deluged with calls from stranded occupants seeking
instructions. Management immediately foresaw our need for additional manpower and ordered 2
dispatchers and 1 supervisor be brought in on overtime.
Calls were being received from people in both towers and the Vista Hotel. The incident commander
was unable to to operate at more than 1 location so a seperate incident was opened for each
location.The first box transmitted was 69 at Vesey & West Streets. When a 10-76 was transmitted
(working fire in a hi-rise), this mandated the transmission of surrogate boxes 9031 and 9032. These
boxes each bring an engine, ladder, and chief from Brooklyn.
At this time the operation was in the underground garage of the complex. The incident commander,
upon learning that we were receiving calls from both towers and the hotel, ordered seperate boxes
transmitted for those locations. Boxes 8084 ( 1WTC), 8087 (2 WTC),300 (at West and Liberty
Streets, for the Vista Hotel) were then transmitted.
With those boxes transmitted, almost every Manhattan unit below Central Park was assigned to the
incident. Numerous relocations from the outer boroughs were made to cover the vacant
firehouses.The incident commander, requiring additional resources, ordered the first "borough call"
in 15 years. A third alarm was transmitted for Brooklyn box 3832 at Columbia and Lorraine Streets,
with the responding units directed to the World Trade Center.
The blast was centered on the B2 level. It was so intense that it caused the collapse of the steel
reinforced concrete floor to the floor below (B3 level), which in turn caused more collapses. Tons of
debris were piled onto the B6 level floor. A steel fire door that opens to the B2 level from a
stairway from the B1 level was blown off it's hinges and embedded into a wall 35 feet away.
The blast just so happened to be located at the point where it could do the most damage. It
knocked out the power plant for the entire complex. This plunged into darkness over 50,000 people
in the Twin Towers. No lights, no elevators, no heat, and lots of soot filled smoke. Most New York
City television stations have their transmitters atop tower 1.This left only 1 TV station on the air
(Channel 2 WCBS). Cable reception was not interrupted as the cable head end is fed directly from
the studio and not the transmitter site. Many of the trapped occupants were listening to their
radios for information. In some of the offices where televisions were located, they were watching
channel 2.
One of the newscasters went on the air and advised people in the towers that if they were having
trouble breathing, they should break out the glass window. This was the worst thing they could have
done. By now the entire tower was filled with smoke and was acting like a 110 story smokestack.
About that time I answered a call from someone seeking instructions. By now, we were told to tell
all callers to stay where they are, block all air vents with whatever rags they could find, stay calm,
and wait. The caller told me he was going to break out a window. He was on the 54th floor. I advised
him not to stating that there are over 500 emergency personnel on the ground and he'd kill
someone with the falling debris. Not to mention the fact that the open window will allow smoke to
enter the area and vent itself. He hung up and went to break the window. I advised the radio
dispatcher to let the command post know to expect falling glass from the 54th floor. Later,the
newscaster was "admonished" by his supervisors.
By 5 P.M. most of the incoming calls were from concerned family members of trapped civilians. This
was sometimes a heart wrenching job as relatives of people who we already knew to be deceased
were asking if we could find their loved ones. All we could do was give them a phone number to the
information center that was set up by the police department for this purpose. Most of the other
calls were from people seeking medical aide, or looking for an estimated rescue time. Given the
enormity of the task of searching 110 floors and 99 elevators in each tower, there was no way I
could tell them how long it would take.
At approximately 11:25 P.M., the last elevator was located, occupants were removed after being in
there almost 12 hours, and the incident was declared under control at 2:25 A.M., Saturday February
27.
Needless to say, lunch was served cold.
The blast's toll:*



















6 civilians killed
Over 1,000 injured
105 firefighters injured - 5 admitted to local hospitals
reinforced floors almost 30 inches think blasted away on 3 levels below grade, plus a
concourse level floor,leaving a crater about 150 feet in diameter at it's largest point.
On the B1 level, the operations control center of the Port Authority Police Department (and
the fire command station forthe complex) was heavily damaged and rendered out of service.
On the B2 level, various walls of elevator shafts and freshair plenums severely damaged,
allowing smoke to enter and rise through the cores of both towers.
Numerous concrete walls destroyed or damaged.
200,000 cubic feet of water poured into the lowest grade fromdamaged refrigeration unit
supplies (from the Hudson River),sewer lines, fresh domestic water lines, steam pipes, and
condensate return. Water 1.5 feet deep across the B6 level.
124 parked cars destroyed, 102 damaged.
Partition walls blown out onto PATH train mezzanine.
Numerous telephone conduits collapsed from ceiling onto cars (but phone service was not
cut, miraculously).
Fire alarm and public address systems out of service.
Elevators out of service.
Water cooled emergency generators shut down due to overheating when their water supply
was cut. This disabled the emergency lighting.
Sprinklers & standpipes out of service.
2,500 tons of rubble removed.
Clean up effort involved 2,700 workers per day, plus a total of 160,000 gallons of cleaning
fluid and 200,00 gallons of detergent.
Restoration cost: $250,000,000.
Tenants began moving back into tower 2 on March 18, 1993,tower 1 on March 29, 1993. The
Vista Hotel opened early this year.
http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0104566.html
North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)
In three separate ceremonies in the three capitals on Dec. 17, 1992, President
Bush, Mexican President Salinas, and Canadian Prime Minister Mulroney signed
the historic North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). The framework
agreement proposed to eliminate restrictions on the flow of goods, services, and
investment in North America. The House of Representatives approved NAFTA,
by a vote of 234 to 200 on November 17, 1993, and the Senate voted 60 to 38
for approval on November 20. It was signed into law by President Clinton on
December 8, 1993, and took effect on January 1, 1994.
Under NAFTA, the United States, Canada, and Mexico become a single, giant,
integrated market of almost 400 million people with $6.5 trillion worth of goods
and services annually. Mexico is the world's second largest importer of U.S.
manufactured goods and the third largest importer of U.S. agricultural products.
Prior to NAFTA, Mexican tariffs averaged about 250% as compared to U.S.
duties. After the pact, about half of the tariffs on trade between Mexico and the
United States were eliminated, and the remaining tariffs and restrictions on
service and investment (as far as it is possible) will be phased out over a 15-year
period. The United States and Canada have had a free-trade agreement since
1989.
The treaty provides full protection of intellectual property rights (patents,
copyrights, and trademarks) and also includes provisions covering trade rules
and dispute settlement and establishes trilateral commissions to administer them.
NAFTA also marks the first time in the history of U.S. trade policy that
environmental concerns have been directly addressed
http://history1900s.about.com/od/1990s/qt/waco.htm
Cult Compound in Waco, Texas Raided (1993): After hearing reports
that Branch Davidian cult leader David Koresh had been abusing children
and amassing a store of weapons, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and
Firearms (ATF) gathered resources and planned to raid the Branch Davidian
compound, known as the Mount Carmel Center located just outside of Waco,
Texas. With a warrant to search for illegal firearms in hand, the ATF
attempted to storm the compound on February 28, 1993.
A gunfight ensued (debate continues over which side fired the first shot).
The shooting lasted nearly two hours, leaving four ATF agents and five
Branch Davidians dead.
For 51 days, the ATF and the FBI waited outside the compound, using
negotiators to try to end the stand-off peacefully. (There has been much
criticism as to how the government handled the negotiations.)
Although a number of children and a few adults were released during this
period, 84 men, women, and children stayed in the compound.
On April 19, 1993, the ATF and FBI attempted to end the siege by using a
form of tear gas (called CS gas), a decision approved by US Attorney
General Janet Reno. Early in the morning, specialized tank-like vehicles
(Combat Engineering Vehicles) punctured holes in the compound's walls and
inserted CS gas. The government was hoping that the gas would safely push
the Branch Davidians out of the compound.
In response to the gas, the Branch Davidians shot back. Just after noon, the
wooden compound caught on fire.
While nine people escaped the blaze, 75 perished either by gunshot or by
fire inside the compound. Twenty-five of the dead were children. Koresh was
also found dead, from a gunshot wound to the head.
Nearly immediately, questions were raised as to how the fire was started
and who was responsible.
What is NAFTA?:
NAFTA is short for the North American Free Trade Agreement. NAFTA covers
Canada, the U.S. and Mexico making it the world’s largest free trade area in terms
of GDP. As of January 1, 2008, all tariffs between the three countries have have
been eliminated. Between 1993-2007, trade tripled from $297 billion to $930
billion. (Source: USTR, U.S. - Mexican Officials Meet to Discuss NAFTA, January 11,
2008; NAFTA: Myth versus Fact, March 18, 2008)
When Was NAFTA Started?:
NAFTA was signed by U.S. President George H.W. Bush, Mexican President Salinas,
and Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney in 1992. It was ratified by the
legislatures of the three countries in 1993. The U.S. House approved it by 234 to
200 on November 17 and the Senate by 60 to 38 on November 20. It was signed
into law by President Bill Clinton on December 8, 1993 and entered force January
1,1994. Although it was started by President Bush, it was a priority of President
Clinton's, and its passage is considered one of his first successes. (Source:
History.com, NAFTA Signed into Law, December 8, 1993.
How Was NAFTA Started?:
The impetus for NAFTA actually began with President Ronald Regan, who
campaigned on a North American common market. In 1984, Congress passed the
Trade and Tariff Act. This is important because it gave the President "fast-track"
authority to negotiate free trade agreements, while while only allowing Congress
the ability to approve or disapprove, not change negotiating points. Canadian Prime
Minister Mulroney agrees with Reagan to begin negotiations for the Canada-U.S.
Free Trade Agreement, which was signed in 1988, went into effect in 1989 and is
now suspended due to NAFTA. (Source: NaFina, NAFTA Timeline)
Meanwhile, Mexican President Salinas and President Bush began negotiations for a
liberalized trade between the two countries. Prior to NAFTA, Mexican tariffs on U.S.
imports were 250% higher than U.S. tariffs on Mexican imports. In 1991, Canada
requests a trilateral agreement, which then led to NAFTA. In 1993, concerns about
liberalization of labor and environmental regulations led to the adoption of two
addendums to NAFTA. (Source: Infoplease.com, NAFTA)
Why Was NAFTA Formed?:
Article 102 of the NAFTA agreement outlines its purpose:







Grant the signatories Most Favored Nation status.
Eliminate barriers to trade and facilitate the cross-border movement of
goods and services.
Promote conditions of fair competition.
Increase investment opportunities.
Provide protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights.
Create procedures for the resolution of trade disputes.
Establish a framework for further trilateral, regional and multilateral
cooperation to expand NAFTA's benefits.
(Source: NAFTA Secretariat, NAFTA FAQ)
http://www.nba.com/mavericks/entertainment/1993_fun_facts.html
Download