NAFTA cost jobs, Edwards says
Democratic presidential hopeful John Edwards said Saturday he wants to replace the empty promise that NAFTA would create millions of jobs with his own promise to be a tough negotiator on trade deals.
On the 14th anniversary of the North American Free Trade Agreement, Edwards condemned the deal that lowered trade barriers between the United States and Canada and Mexico, arguing that it has paved the way for a series of deals that put the interests of multinational corporations ahead of working families.
“NAFTA was sold to the American people with promises that it would grow the economy and create millions of new jobs. But today, we know those promises were empty,” he said. “In all three countries, it has hurt workers and families while helping corporate insiders.”
The former North Carolina senator said more than 1 million American jobs have gone overseas because of NAFTA, and that up to 30 million more could follow in the next decade.
San Juan, Puerto Rico
Holloway case may be abandoned
Aruba’s chief prosecutor said he will close the case of missing American teenager Natalee Holloway by the end of the month unless his office finds that there is enough evidence to charge someone with a major crime.
The prosecutor, Hans Mos, said he would not comment about the kind of evidence his office is reviewing but that he does not anticipate finding Holloway’s remains and prosecuting a case without them would be “very hard.”
“We promised the suspects that after Dec. 31, we will not pursue the case,” Mos said Friday. “This investigation should end at a certain point.”
Holloway’s parents did not return multiple messages left at their homes and on their cell phones.
No one has been formally charged in the investigation, which critics have said was botched in its early stages by Aruban authorities.
The probe has revolved around three suspects: Joran van der Sloot, a 20-year-old Dutch citizen, and brothers Deepak Kalpoe, 24, and Satish Kalpoe, 21, from Suriname.
They were the last people known to see Holloway before she vanished on the night of May 30, 2005. All three, who have denied any role in her disappearance, have been arrested several times but released after different judges ruled there was not enough evidence to keep holding them.