The following are links to major stories on trade policy from The Washington Post. The most recent stories are listed first. Highlights on this page include:

House Rejects 'Fast Track'
'Fast Track' Shelved
Clinton Attacks Critics
Clinton Officially Requests 'Fast Track' Authority
How Free Should Free Trade Be?
NAFTA Remains Unpopular With the Public

House Leaders See Trade as a Key Issue
July 20, 1998
Trade remains a divisive issue for both parties, though Republicans are betting that they have more to gain than lose from putting it once again on the national stage shortly before the election.

U.S. in Talks With EU On Easing Trade Curbs
February 4, 1998
The Clinton administration, seeking to revive its free-trade agenda, is talking with the European Union about striking a deal to reduce transatlantic trade barriers.

Chile Takes Its Trade Elsewhere
December 25, 1997
The delay of U.S. 'fast-track' legislation makes Canadian and Mexican products more attractive

Dem. Freshmen Faced Choice Between Labor and Business
December 12, 1997
For some freshmen Democrats in the House, their decision on a controversial trade bill was a choice between dancing with the date who brought them to the party or choosing another partner.

On Trade, U.S. Retreating Into Globalphobia
December 8, 1997
No longer, it seems, is there an unchallenged belief that Americans are better off when their economy is open and their government assumes the burdens of leadership in world affairs.

Florida Is Torn Over 'Fast Track' Trade-Offs
November 29, 1997
Florida is pulled in one direction by its bountiful but fragile agriculture while its thriving trade pushes it the other way. Its congressional delegation is similarly torn, with senators favoring the bill and most of Florida's House members opposing it.

Clinton a Changed Figure at This Trade Summit
November 23, 1997
President Clinton left for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum of heads of state in Seattle having been denied key trade powers by Congress; four years ago, he had just pushed through the North American Free Trade Agreement.

President Takes Blame for 'Fast Track' Delay
November 11, 1997
Confronted with the failure of a frenetic, down-to-the-wire lobbying campaign, President Clinton asked Congress yesterday to delay action, most likely until next year, on a measure expanding the president's power to negotiate free-trade agreements.

$4 Billion in 'Fast Track' Incentives
November 6, 1997
President Clinton tried to lure skeptical House Democrats back into his camp with a $4 billion package of programs to help workers and communities harmed by international trade agreements.

'Fast Track' Passes First Test in Senate
November 5, 1997
President Clinton's proposal for expanded trade negotiating powers cleared a critical first hurdle in the Senate.

'Fast Track' Backers Switch to High Gear
November 4, 1997
President Clinton opened a final drive to salvage his high-stakes bid for expanded trade negotiating power, mixing last-minute concessions with warnings about the dire economic consequences if Congress turns him down.

Clinton Hits 'Fast Track' Opponents
October 28, 1997
Laying bare his frustration with many fellow Democrats, President Clinton complained that lawmakers who want to limit his power to negotiate trade agreements are pursuing an "America-last strategy" that is rooted in ignorance of the new international economy.

Richardson to Lobby for 'Fast Track' Bill
October 23, 1997
President Clinton has another rescue mission for Bill Richardson: Save his "fast track" free-trade plan.

Ad Watch: Trade Policy
October 17, 1997
A comparison and analysis of ads for and against fast track.

Clinton, House GOP Leaders Agree on 'Fast Track' Trade Authority
October 8, 1997
President Clinton and House Republican leaders have reached agreement on a bill that would give the president new trade negotiating authority.

Democratic Votes on Trade Still Scarce
October 8, 1997
Rep. Thomas C. Sawyer (D-Ohio) is like many other Democrats who know that no matter how hard the White House pushes on fast track, they have to face suspicious voters back home for whom the issue of "trade" has become a metaphor for broader economic problems.

Bipartisan Push for 'Fast Track' Bill Coming Apart
September 28, 1997
For Clinton, this fall was supposed to be a season of bipartisan achievement on the issue of free trade: Republican congressional leaders would deliver their members, Clinton would deliver moderate Democrats, and together they would have the votes to overcome the opposition of organized labor and pass a "fast track" trade bill. No such luck.

Business Leaders Gear Up Lobbying and Ad Campaign for 'Fast Track' Bill
September 19, 1997
To counter a fierce lobbying effort by organized labor, business leaders are planning to spend at least $2 million on an air and land war to persuade Congress to broaden President Clinton's trade negotiating powers.

President Seeks Power to Negotiate More Trade Pacts
September 17, 1997
President Clinton defied organized labor and liberals within his own party and formally asked Congress for authority to negotiate new trade accords, including an expansion of the North American Free Trade Agreement.

Labor Plans Ads, Lobbying on Trade Pacts
September 17, 1997
Organized labor has launched an all-out political attack against President Clinton's request for "fast track" legislative authority.

Trade Measure Puts Undecided Lawmaker in Lobbyists' Sights
September 17, 1997
Organized labor and environmentalists are opposing fast track vigorously, as they did with the North American Free Trade Agreement in the early 1990s. But big business is strongly behind it and Clinton appears ready to put the full might of his popularity behind the measure.

Finding the Right Free-Trade Pitch
September 13, 1997
The fundamental issue at stake is where economic globalization goes from here – whether the process of ever-increasing international trade and investment continues apace, as Clinton favors, or whether it is halted or altered by new rules to protect workers' rights and the environment, as his foes want.

White House Subdued on NAFTA's Impact
July 11, 1997
The Clinton administration, which once promoted the North American Free Trade Agreement as a major boon for American companies and workers, finds in a report that NAFTA has had a "modest positive effect" on the U.S. economy.

NAFTA Clouds Prospects of New Pact
May 3, 1997
The North American Free Trade Agreement is working poorly – or so many Americans say in recent polls. That perception, hotly disputed by Clinton administration officials and many economists, is bedeviling President Clinton as he advances a proposal that would create a western hemisphere-wide free trade area by 2005.

NAFTA: Free Trade Bought and Oversold
September 30, 1996
In retrospect, it appears NAFTA's supporters oversold its benefits at the same time as critics were exaggerating its drawbacks.

House Approves U.S.-Canada-Mexico Trade Pact on 234 to 200 Vote, Giving Clinton Big Victory
November 18, 1993
House approval of the North American Free Trade Agreement gave the President Clinton a crucial victory after a bitter debate that crisscrossed party and ideological lines for most of the fall.