New front in lumber battle

[CHIMO]

New front in lumber battle
Seen as threat to NAFTA: U.S. producers plan challenge to Supreme Court

WASHINGTON - The U.S. lumber industry is set to play its ace card today by announcing it is ready to go to the Supreme Court to dispute NAFTA's authority over trade disputes.

With talks deadlocked, the Coalition for Fair Lumber Imports plans a constitutional challenge of a key part of the 11-year-old trade agreement that attempts to settle industry disputes among Canada, Mexico and the United States.

If the Supreme Court backs the coalition's challenge of Chapter 19 -- which sets up panels such as one that recently ruled in Canada's favour in the softwood dispute -- it could be the beginning of the end of the North American Free Trade Agreement, trade analysts said yesterday. Such a ruling would not allow Canada or Mexico to complain about U.S. trade laws and pressure to renegotiate the agreement would intensify.

"This would certainly present Canada with a political dilemma," said Bill Merkin, a former U.S. trade negotiator who was one of the authors of the original Canada-U.S trade agreement.

http://www.canada.com/national/nationalpost/financialpost/story.html?id=59dcae85-bcac-4109-b35c-63c6dbbf8216

Some political dilemmas are just what the doctor ordered.

[Roland99]

1. U.S.-Canada timber fight in court

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1126561810768&call_page=TS_Business&call_pageid=968350072197&call_pagepath=Business/News&pubid=968163964505&DPL=IvsNDS%2f7ChAX&tacodalogin=yes

OTTAWA—Smarting over a major NAFTA loss to Canada in the multibillion-dollar softwood trade dispute, the America lumber industry says it will challenge the continental trade pact in the United States' courts.

The U.S. Coalition for Fair Lumber Imports, which has fought to restrict Canadian softwood flows across the border, says it will ask an American court to rule on the constitutionality of the North American Free Trade Agreement today.

The highly unusual move will pit the powerful American lumber lobby against the administration of U.S. President George W. Bush, which is responsible for international trade treaties.

And it will likely further complicate the trade dispute that has so far cost Canadian producers more than $5 billion in duties on their softwood exports.

I wonder how much of an effect Katrina will have on the permanence of the tariffs now.

[firefox]

2. What I would like to know is

Did this $5 billion in tariffs go to American timber companies under the Byrd amendment? How can the US just ignore the ruling that went against them?

[CHIMO]

3. It

Is in the process of going.

It seems that the US want to cut a deal and give back about half and distribute the other half to producers. Then limit the Canadian softwood imports to a max of 1/3 at the best of times.

[Hand]

4. Answer to question 1...

I think the $5 billion is sitting in an escrow account pending a final settlement. BUT... US gov't. (Zoellick, I think) has already said that it will never be returned to the Canadian payers. I think there was talk of using it to compensate US timber companies for any losses.

:crazy:

Answer to question 2... Two words: Rogue State.

:grr: :nuke:

[Bassic]

6. They are the US

To them no ruling is supposed to go against them.

[Spazito]

5. There is no frikkin dilemma, imo

We serve 6 months notice to leave NAFTA BEFORE the court rules on this, simple as that.

NAFTA has only benefitted multinational corporations and hurts the general population in many ways. Time to dismantle it.

[Bassic]

7. I'm with ya.

Let's get out of NAFTA now!

[CHIMO]

8. It Makes

One wonder. How can these politicians sit in Ottawa and seem to be so dumb.

They have an agreement that the other party doesn't want to honor.

Ok. But don't they have a freaking clue that if they don't step up to the plate and say we take your action and response to be an indication that you are not honoring the agreement. Therefore as of this moment we are advising you that we hereby are withdrawing from NAFTA.

I mean even someone like Don Cherry can understand that if you let one guy walk all over you all the other countries will take the same attitude. Which means that all our foreign agreements aren't worth the paper they are signed on.

Further than that the Canadian corporations should realize that if the agreement is not thrown into the round file that they will not be able to count on their own government support in overseas contracts. The other countries will just laugh at them and say so what.



"Challenging the constitutionality of NAFTA's Chapter 19 would allow critics to call into question the credibility of the United States as a country that abides by its solemn international commitments," said Nancy Hughes Anthony, president of the Canadian chamber. Thomas Donahue, president of the U.S. chamber, agreed.

http://www.canada.com/national/nationalpost/financialpost/story.html?id=59dcae85-bcac-4109-b35c-63c6dbbf8216

[applegrove]

9. Yikes. If the NAFTA Agreement isn't worth the paper it is written on -

why would we not do a trade agreement with Europe or Asia instead?