The House Republican charged with overseeing trade policy says Congress should act on all three pending free trade agreements within the next six months. Rep. Dave Camp, who chairs the Ways and Means Committee, said at a hearing completion of trade deals with South Korea, Colombia and Panama were "a sure-fire way to create American jobs by growing U.S. exports of goods and services."
All three agreements were signed in 2007 but Congress has put off ratification, with Democrats claiming they didn't adequately address such issues as Korea's restrictions on U.S. autos and violence against labor leaders in Colombia. The United States and South Korea recently reached a deal to further open Korea's auto market.
