US Business Doesn't Want SPP?

The Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP) was born more than two years ago at a North American free-trade leaders' summit in Waco, Tex. The reality of the SPP and the perception among its critics couldn't be farther apart. To a rag-tag collection of mainly U.S. groups from both ends of the political spectrum, the SPP is a secret plot by the Bush administration and Big Business to wipe out borders between the three countries, tap Canada's oil and throw a security cordon around it all. ... But many of its modest ambitions remain unfulfilled. And measured by the obstacles to travel and commerce - new and planned - the SPP is a disappointment. "There is great confusion and aversion to travel here," complained Roger Dow, president of the U.S. Travel Industry Association. He cited new visa and passport hassles and fees. Overseas travel to the United States has plunged 17 per cent since the 9/11 attacks, even as global travel has grown. That has cost the U.S. economy $94-billion (U.S.) in spending, 200,000 jobs and $16-billion in tax revenue, according to the Discover America Partnership, a U.S. travel industry group. ... Nativist and protectionist sentiment is running high on Capitol Hill these days, pointed out Randel Johnson, the Chamber of Commerce's top lobbyist on border and immigration issues. And he scoffed at the suggestion that Americans are ready to embrace the idea of a North American security perimeter. "We're probably 100 years away from seeing that," he said. In the current environment, a wall on the 49th parallel seems more likely than a North American security blanket. And that's not much of a partnership. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20071106.IBWORLD06/TPStory/Business [Proofreader’s note: this article was edited for spelling and typos on November 7, 2007]

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