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<p class=MsoNormal><b><font size=4 color=navy face="Trebuchet MS"><span
style='font-size:14.0pt;font-family:"Trebuchet MS";color:navy;font-weight:bold'>Rob
Portman Gets Blasted for Free Trade Record <o:p></o:p></span></font></b></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face="Trebuchet MS"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Trebuchet MS";color:navy'>by <a
href="http://www.economyincrisis.org/users/dustin-ensinger"
title="View user profile.">Dustin Ensinger</a> on March 19, 2010 - 11:08am<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face="Trebuchet MS"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Trebuchet MS";color:navy'><a
href="http://www.economyincrisis.org/content/rob-portman-gets-blasted-free-trade-record">http://www.economyincrisis.org/</a>
<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:#E3E3E3'><font size=2 face="Trebuchet MS"><span
lang=EN style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Trebuchet MS"'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p style='background:#E3E3E3'><font size=2 face="Trebuchet MS"><span lang=EN
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Trebuchet MS"'>Labor leaders and fair
trade advocates began their assault Wednesday on Rob Portman, the leading U.S.
Senate candidate in the Republican primary, highlighting his past support for
job-killing free trade agreements, according to <em><i><font face="Trebuchet MS"><span
style='font-family:"Trebuchet MS"'>The Youngstown Business Journal Daily</span></font></i></em>.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p style='background:#E3E3E3'><font size=2 face="Trebuchet MS"><span lang=EN
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Trebuchet MS"'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p style='background:#E3E3E3'><font size=2 face="Trebuchet MS"><span lang=EN
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Trebuchet MS"'>On a conference call
derisively said to be a “celebration” of the five-year anniversary
of Portman’s nomination to become George W. Bush’s U.S. Trade
Representative, participants laid out the case against Portman, who will likely
face off against Lieutenant Governor Lee Fisher in the general election in
November.<br>
<br>
<a href="http://www.biocrawler.com/w/images/7/7d/Rob_portman_with_bush.jpg"
style='float:left' id="aptureLink_si3Tw0paDl" jQuery1269452595801=63><font
color="#003399"><span style='color:#003399;text-decoration:none'><img border=0
width=250 height=160 id="_x0000_i1025" src="cid:image001.jpg@01CACB58.6CBA7500"
style='border-bottom-width:0px;border-left-width:0px;border-right-width:0px;
border-top-width:0px' title="Rob portman with bush jpg"></span></font></a><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p style='background:#E3E3E3'><font size=2 face="Trebuchet MS"><span lang=EN
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Trebuchet MS"'>“George Bush chose
him for a reason. His votes in the House betrayed <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:State
w:st="on">Ohio</st1:State></st1:place> workers time and time again,”
Doug Sizemore, executive secretary-treasurer of the Cincinnati AFL-CIO, said,
according to <em><i><font face="Trebuchet MS"><span style='font-family:"Trebuchet MS"'>The
Youngstown Business Journal Daily</span></font></i></em>.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p style='background:#E3E3E3'><font size=2 face="Trebuchet MS"><span lang=EN
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Trebuchet MS"'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p style='background:#E3E3E3'><font size=2 face="Trebuchet MS"><span lang=EN
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Trebuchet MS"'>Indeed when President Bush
plucked Portman out of the U.S. House of Representatives after a 12-year run in
the lower chamber, he referred to Portman as “a great record as a
champion of free and fair trade.” His record backs up the
“free part” at least.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p style='background:#E3E3E3'><font size=2 face="Trebuchet MS"><span lang=EN
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Trebuchet MS"'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p style='background:#E3E3E3'><font size=2 face="Trebuchet MS"><span lang=EN
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Trebuchet MS"'>As a member of the Ohio
House delegation, Portman supported free trade pacts with <st1:City w:st="on">Central
America</st1:City>, <st1:country-region w:st="on">Australia</st1:country-region>,
<st1:country-region w:st="on">Singapore</st1:country-region> and <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:country-region w:st="on">Chile</st1:country-region></st1:place>.
He voted against withdrawing from the World Trade Organization and in favor of
providing the president with even greater power to negotiate free trade
agreements. He steadfastly opposed extending aid to those displaced
because of free trade policies.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p style='background:#E3E3E3'><font size=2 face="Trebuchet MS"><span lang=EN
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Trebuchet MS"'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p style='background:#E3E3E3'><font size=2 face="Trebuchet MS"><span lang=EN
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Trebuchet MS"'>According to Sizemore,
Portman is also a supporter of the failed North American Free Trade Agreement,
believing that it has created jobs.<br>
<br>
“I can tell you there are 50,000 <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:State w:st="on">Ohio</st1:State></st1:place>
workers who would disagree with him on that,” Sizemore said, according to
<em><i><font face="Trebuchet MS"><span style='font-family:"Trebuchet MS"'>The
Youngstown Business Journal Daily</span></font></i></em>.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p style='background:#E3E3E3'><font size=2 face="Trebuchet MS"><span lang=EN
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Trebuchet MS"'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p style='background:#E3E3E3'><b><font size=2 face="Trebuchet MS"><span
lang=EN style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Trebuchet MS";font-weight:bold'>The
<st1:State w:st="on">Ohio</st1:State> Conference on Fair Trade said that during
the Portman-era as U.S. Trade Rep., 17,000 <st1:State w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">Ohio</st1:place></st1:State> jobs were outsourced while the trade
deficit rose 6.5 percent. Portman also allowed the <st1:country-region
w:st="on">U.S.</st1:country-region> trade deficit with <st1:country-region
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">China</st1:place></st1:country-region> to swell
to over $200 billion for the first time in history.<o:p></o:p></span></font></b></p>
<p style='background:#E3E3E3'><font size=2 face="Trebuchet MS"><span lang=EN
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Trebuchet MS"'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p style='background:#E3E3E3'><font size=2 face="Trebuchet MS"><span lang=EN
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Trebuchet MS"'>Participants also disputed
Portman’s claim that he helped to create millions of jobs through his
time in public service, a notion that seems almost laughable given his record
on trade.<br>
<br>
“Why do we have 35 out of 50 states that their unemployment funds are
bankrupt?” Donnie Blatt, rapid response coordinator for the United Steel
Workers of America, said, according to <em><i><font face="Trebuchet MS"><span
style='font-family:"Trebuchet MS"'>The Youngstown Business Journal Daily</span></font></i></em>.
“I can only assume that those millions of jobs were created in <st1:country-region
w:st="on">China</st1:country-region>, <st1:country-region w:st="on">Mexico</st1:country-region>
and <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">India</st1:place></st1:country-region>.”<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
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