George Should Work the Phones : GOP defection in Congress over NAFTA needs to be quelled

More than two dozen Republican members of Congress say they are growing tepid, if not downright ornery, about the North American Free Trade Agreement because of new travelers taxes that the Clinton Administration is proposing to offset a projected loss from the elimination of tariffs on Mexican goods.

Such defections undoubtedly would mean death for the historic trade pact, which is less popular among Democrats than among Republicans. Without GOP votes, the agreement cannot pass Congress.

The nascent Republican revolt against NAFTA is ironic, because the accord was initiated under President George Bush and was hammered out with Mexico City and Ottawa by top Republican negotiators. It seems like nothing so much as a belated stab in the back by Bush’s own party.

To its credit, the Clinton Administration, which obviously is in a good measure of political difficulty now, agreed with Bush on NAFTA and is working for passage even though few labor unions and not enough congressional Democrats like it.

The GOP revolt is said to be based on opposition to raising taxes on incoming travelers and on some cargo shipments. Under the federal deficit-reduction budget accord in Congress, any new expenditure or reduction in revenue has to be matched by an increase in taxes or a cut in spending.

The Clinton people propose hiking fees on traffic coming into the United States by air or sea from Mexico. The aim is to cover a loss of about $2 billion in tariffs.

Naturally, President Clinton says he is flexible on this point. That’s surely the case, but if NAFTA is to ride out the storm it must get every possible Republican vote.

To this end former President Bush should now offer to work the phones on NAFTA’s behalf. The proposed accord is a result of one of his foreign-policy decisions, and it was his team that negotiated the basic deal. Clinton could have dumped the whole thing when he came into office, but instead he did the right thing and stuck with it.

Bush owes it to Clinton, the country and to the Mexican and Canadian governments to lobby for this much-needed trade agreement.