Obama changes course on NAFTA reopener

Over the years, we and many news outlets have reported on globalization critics’ assertion that free trade pacts create a “race to the bottom” on environmental and labor standards. Union contracts too expensive in the U.S.? Try Sri Lanka! Pesky Clean Air Act requirements too costly? They don’t have those in Jakarta! That sort of thing. You can find plenty of critics of this assessment, too.

President Obama made readdressing environmental and labor issues in NAFTA a major issue when he met with Prime Minister Stephen Harper in Ottawa in February.

But now it appears, after meeting with Mexican President Felipe Calderon, that’s off.

NAFTA has, and will continue to have, a big effect on the North Country economy. It’s worth watching how – and if – it evolves under the Obama Administration.