WASHINGTON (AP) — Congress has approved free trade agreements with South Korea, Colombia and Panama, ending a four-year drought in the forming of new trade partnerships and giving the White House and Capitol Hill the opportunity to show they can work together to stimulate the economy and put people back to work.
In rapid succession, the House and Senate voted Wednesday on the three trade pacts, which the administration says could boost exports by $13 billion and support tens of thousands of American jobs.
The agreements would lower or eliminate tariffs American exporters face in the three countries.
The House also passed and sent to President Barack Obama a bill to extend aid to workers displaced by foreign competition. Obama had demanded that the worker aid bill be part of the trade package.
