Democrats to Seek Delay on Trade Pact

Minority Leader John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) said that "any vote to delay the consideration of the Colombia Free Trade Agreement would violate the spirit of the law and undermine our ability to create more American jobs. Let me be clearer: It would be cheating."

The political tension surrounding the Colombia trade deal has been heightened in recent weeks by events in the Democratic presidential primary campaign. The top strategist for Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.) was ousted Sunday after revelations that he met with Colombian government officials in his capacity as head of a public relations firm promoting the deal. Clinton and Obama have announced their opposition to the agreement.

U.S. labor unions also oppose the pact, citing allegations that trade unionists in Colombia, are subject to violence that sometimes includes murder.

Under current law, the House has until early August to approve or reject the trade pact without amendments. If the House approves it, the Senate has 30 legislative days -- until early October, under the planned congressional session -- to do the same.

In the current environment, Pelosi said, proceeding to an up-or-down vote would lead to defeat for the trade deal, sending a worse signal to allies than doing nothing.

"If brought to the floor immediately, it would lose. And what message would that send?" she asked. "And so I thought there was everything to be gained [by] continuing our conversation."

Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) remained opposed to moving the trade deal after a private meeting with Bush at the White House late yesterday.

The exchanges along Pennsylvania Avenue yesterday were some of the sharpest yet in the Democrats' 15-month reign on Capitol Hill. They accused Bush of trying to ram a trade deal through Congress without first adhering to any of their wishes on additional domestic stimulus provisions.

"She raised this issue with the president, and the president said he was going to do it his way. So now the speaker is invoking her power," said Rep. Sander M. Levin (D-Mich.), a key union ally.

But at a hastily called briefing yesterday afternoon, several Cabinet secretaries warned against abandoning the Colombia agreement. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice called the trade deal the most important in recent memory, and U.S. Trade Representative Susan C. Schwab said the House's actions were "unprecedented and unfair by any definition."

Other officials said the trade deal would prevent Colombia from sinking deeper into the control of drug traffickers.

"This is unworthy of the trust our citizens have placed in their national leaders -- it is shameful. Speaker Pelosi got her 3 a.m. call and said, 'I'm not answering it,' " John Walter, director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, said in reference to the well-known Clinton campaign ad about national security.