United States of North American oligopolies: Mexican president goes to Washington

By Pablo Moctezuma Barragán

The President of Mexico, Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO) spoke next to U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House in Washington on Wednesday, July 8. It was the first international visit of Mexico’s head of state and it was carried out in the context of the approval of the new North American trade agreement between Canada, the United States and Mexico, known in Mexico as T-MEC (CUSMA in Canada). Justin Trudeau had previously declined to participate in the meeting. He was not interested in talking about the Canadian renewable energy projects that were canceled by Mexico, nor about the complaints in Canada of human rights organizations denouncing the deplorable working and housing conditions of Mexican seasonal agricultural workers and the Canadian government’s lack of attention to them. To date, more than a thousand agricultural workers have been infected with COVID-19 and three have died.

Aggressive trade agenda of the US shakes existing arrangements

The lead article of TML Weekly of June 15 by K C Adams, published on the website of the Communist Party of Canada (Marxist-Leninist), focuses on the inter-imperialist collusion and contention of competing sections of the global financial oligarchy. In Canada, this is reflected in the conflicts surrounding the Canada US Mexico Trade Agreement (CUSMA). This collusion and contention posits the very grave danger of an inter-imperialist world war involving the militaries of the big powers.

GM shutdown, the loss of jobs and manufacturing value must be stopped

Time for a new direction for the economy under the control of Canadians! | K.C. ADAMS

Unifor 222 press conference, November 26, 2018, demands GM keep Oshawa plant producing.

GM executives in Detroit have announced the closure of an auto assembly plant they control in Oshawa, Ontario. The shutdown will terminate the direct employment of 2,522 auto workers, members of Unifor Local 222 and a large number of salaried workers, and result in an enormous loss of value for the Canadian economy and community.

On the US attack against Oshawa auto workers

In the same breath as they pass brutal anti-worker legislation to criminalize the postal workers, the cartel parties ooze sympathy for the auto workers in Oshawa. The pundits are brought to the fore by the media to cynically tell the workers “to move on” and “prepare for the new economy” featuring robotics and automated cars. The president of Unifor is right when he says this is an attack on both the workers and the nation but is not he the one who cast his lot with NAFTA and split the CLC and now fulminates how he has been “betrayed” and will “fight.” That will be a good thing!

For your information: NAFTA becomes USMCA

The supranational oligopolies that control the economies of North America and seek global hegemony have tightened the screws of their domination over the peoples of the U.S., Mexico and Canada. The changes to the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in becoming the U.S. Mexico Canada Agreement (USMCA) have both strengthened and loosened the rules of international trade on the continent to favour the most powerful oligarchs.

The noise accompanying the new free trade agreement between US, Mexico and Canada

By K.C. ADAMS

Since President Trump’s inauguration in 2017, the Trudeau Liberals and their retinue in the mass media and trade union movement have hysterically bleated about the demise of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). They have presented Trump’s threat to walk away from NAFTA as a grave danger to Canada’s economy and saving the trade agreement as akin to saving Canada from collapse. The mass media generated a three-ring circus of non-stop “will they agree or not,” “will Trump pull the plug or not,” “will Freeland appear on the steps to make an announcement or not.”

International trade as a weapon of exploitation, chauvinism and war

Necessity for a new direction for international trade | K.C. ADAMS

In March, the U.S. government suddenly announced tariffs on $60 billion worth of Chinese exports to the U.S. and threatened even more. China has now retaliated with tariffs of its own against certain U.S. exports. Whatever the reasoning for these tariffs, the sudden imposition seriously disrupts the working lives of those involved in producing those goods in both China and the U.S. and those using the commodities either as a means of further production or articles of consumption. Modern industrial mass production cannot simply be turned on or off with the flick of a switch without causing widespread pain. This is no way to conduct economic relations among the peoples of the world.

Billions in state funds for transportation corridors to serve US-dominated empire-building

Federal government marches further into dead end of nation-wrecking. The working class is determined to affirm its right to build the new! Report from WORKERS’ FORUM

Transport Canada has announced another $2.1 billion of state funds for the Trade and Transportation Corridors Initiative to serve the global oligopolies and their control of the Canadian and international economy.[1]

A Ministry press release on July 4 states the Trade and Transportation Corridors Initiative is “[to] build stronger, more efficient transportation corridors to international markets…. Canadian businesses will be able to better compete, grow and create even more jobs well into the future.”

Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal: the issues, the method, the opposition

Indepth report by Renewal Update, May 25, 2016

Demonstrations at hearings oppose the deal

The people’s opposition is deepening the legitimacy crisis of the institutions which advocate the neo-liberal agenda and the parties which champion it. Their attempt to use public consultations to give legitimacy to a neo-liberal free trade deal that has already been negotiated and signed behind the backs of Canadians is seriously at risk. In every city where the government’s consultations on the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) have been held, Canadians inside and outside pointed out that far from upholding trade on the basis of mutual benefit, the TPP puts trade further under the domination of global monopolies in pursuit of their own private interests. It is a nation-wrecking agreement that attacks the right of Canadians to sovereign decision-making power.

Maritime strategy of the Quebec Liberals: Serving the interests of the United States of North American monopolies

For your information: two articles on the Maritime Strategy of Quebec – the latest plan of the ruling circles to build infrastructure and establish Gateways and Trade Corridors across Canada to facilitate the transportation of energy resources and manufactured goods to North America, Europe and Asia.

The Couillard government promotes its Maritime Strategy.

By LOUIS LANG

The statements of the Couillard Liberals promise economic growth and thousands of jobs all over Quebec. In fact, it would seem that what is being proposed is a new version of the Security Prosperity Partnership (SPP). The SPP, in which the Paul Martin government was involved, was a plan integrating the Canadian, U.S. and Mexican economies into the United States of North American Monopolies. This was to form a trade and military bloc in the inter-imperialist striving over control of world markets, spheres of influence, cheap labour and resources and zones for the export of capital. The Maritime Strategy being put forward by the Quebec Couillard government as a “pivotal project“ to develop the economy of Quebec is not a plan to build an independent national economy for the benefit of the people of Quebec but rather it is to put the resources and transportation infrastructure of Quebec in the service of North American monopolies.