The U.S. Presidential campaign is getting somewhat heated on the Democratic side, and the acrimony seems to have spilled into trade policy:
On trade [Barack Obama] also criticized her for saying one thing and taking another position when she decided to run for the presidency. “Because only in Washington could Senator Clinton say that NAFTA led to economic improvement up until she started running for President,” he said. “Now she says we need a time-out on trade. No one knows when this time-out will end. Maybe after the election.”
I don't mean to take sides here, but I think he makes a somewhat valid point. Why call for a "time-out" on trade? If there's a problem with trade and trade agreements, why not try to come up with a solution? No one is calling for a "time-out" on health care or other issues.
In fairness to her, though, her actual quote is: "And as President, in my first months in office, I will take a time out from new trade deals to assess their impact before going forward." So, I don't think it's quite right to suggest the time-out will end "after the election."
