Clinton fails a leadership test

By Other Views: Washington Post
Published June 18, 2007

There are pluses and minuses, it's often said, to having a former first lady running for president. On the debit side, for example, is the oligarchical aura of two families passing the presidency back and forth for 24 or possibly 28 consecutive years. On the positive side is the experience Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., gained during eight years in the White House, experience that ought to translate into a broader national perspective than a senator or governor can attain.

But has it? That's the question raised by Clinton's announcement that she will oppose the free trade agreement with South Korea - and for the narrowest of special interest reasons.

The United States and South Korea in April concluded 10 months of negotiations to sign what would be, if ratified, the most far-reaching trade agreement since the pact with Mexico and Canada that President Bill Clinton championed in 1993.

But forget all that; Sen. Clinton objects that South Korean manufacturers sell many more cars here than do American carmakers over there. Never mind that the agreement requires Korea to remove discriminatory tariffs and taxes on U.S. cars; never mind that U.S. tariffs on Korean cars can "snap back" if Korea breaks its word. Not good enough, says Clinton.

Where are the Democratic candidates with the courage to say, as Bill Clinton once did, that openness to the world is good for America? One would have hoped that Sen. Clinton would be such a candidate. But if she can't stand up in as clear a case as this one, the hope may be misplaced.

[Last modified June 17, 2007, 22:24:07]