(The Associated Press distributed the following article on August 13.)
WATERLOO, Iowa — Six Democratic presidential candidates sketched out differences on health care and trade Wednesday as they competed for the backing of organized labor, which is key to securing the party’s nomination.
North Carolina Sen. John Edwards and Missouri Rep. Richard Gephardt bragged that they’ve led the fight against trade deals, saying the deals resulted in American jobs being shipped overseas and declining wages.
The two men criticized their rivals who have supported trade pacts in the past. “Most of them were for those treaties when they were before Congress,” said Gephardt, wagging his finger.
Added Edwards: “There are a lot of Democrats have never seen a trade agreement they didn’t like.”
Trade is a key issue for organized labor because an effort to expand the North American Free Trade Agreement is pending before Congress.
Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry conceded that he had voted for trade agreements during the Clinton administration, but argued that he now opposes expansion of those agreements.
“During the Clinton years I voted for trade, but we have seen a sea change over those years,” Kerry said.
Florida Sen. Bob Graham said he would push for protections in any trade agreements negotiated with other countries. “If we have a level playing field, we can win,” he said.
Kerry, Graham and Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman all voted in favor of the original NAFTA, but Kerry and Graham argued that it is now time for additional protections.
Former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean said he supported NAFTA because it was good for his state. Dean now wants labor and environmental standards added to it.
Ohio Rep. Dennis Kucinich said he would pull out of the World Trade Organization and cancel NAFTA altogether. “Anyone who talks about changing it doesn’t know what he’s talking about,” he said.
Kerry and Graham argued that Gephardt’s $200 billion-plus plan to expand the nation’s health care system was too expensive, although all of the candidates have their own plans to fix the system.
“No one believes there is $228 billion to put in that plan,” added Kerry, who has his own $75 billion plan.
Dean pledged that he would not raise the retirement age to help save the Social Security system. “I will create a commission on Social Security and privatization will be off the table,” said Dean, who had said previously that he would consider raising the retirement age.
Labor is a key constituency as the Democrats battle over their party’s presidential nomination, and six of the rivals trooped through the annual convention of the Iowa Federation of Labor. It’s the first of three straight days of candidate forums across the state this week, two sponsored by labor groups.
Only Lieberman, activist Al Sharpton and former Illinois Sen. Carol Moseley Braun opted to skip the forum.
Precinct caucuses in Iowa next January launch the presidential nominating season. Exit polls showed that 26 percent of the voters in the 2000 election came from union households, and about a third of those likely to attend a precinct caucus next January will come from union households.