By my count, the NYT used "free trade" 5 times, not counting references to a trade deal known as the "North American Free Trade Agreement." I am beginning to suspect that this could be a paid product placement. As I have pointed out endlessly, NAFTA did not free all trade -- Mexican professionals still face substantial obstacles to working in the United States, so the deal did not free trade in professional services. It also increased protectionism in the form of copyright and patent protection. So, let's save space and trees -- just refer to a "trade" agenda. I guess we should just be glad that they aren't still describing Mexico's post NAFTA growth (1.3 percent average annual per capita GDP growth) as "rapid."
--Dean Baker
