McCain calls himself a NAFTA supporter

SAN DIEGO — Republican presidential candidate John McCain in one of his strongest endorsements of free trade called himself "an unapologetic supporter of NAFTA," an agreement that many Americans feel has cost them jobs.

"I reject the false virtues of economic isolationism," McCain told the National Council of La Raza, a major Hispanic organization. "Any confident, competent country and its government should embrace competition," he said. "It makes us stronger."

Citing his recent visit to Colombia and Mexico, McCain said he understands "how vitally important it is to the prosperity and security of our country to strengthen our trade, investment and diplomatic ties to other countries in our hemisphere."

He said he fully supports the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the Central American Free Trade Agreement and the Colombian Free Trade Agreement.

Congress approved the NAFTA agreement with Mexico and Canada in 1993, and the agreement with six Central American nations in 2005, but has blocked the agreement with Colombia.

Acknowledging that some Americans do lose jobs "to foreign competition," McCain said he has proposed "a comprehensive reform of our unemployment insurance and worker retraining programs."

McCain's Democratic opponent, Barack Obama, has been much cooler to free-trade agreements and wants to revisit some aspects of NAFTA.

Obama would shift

focus to Afghanistan

WASHINGTON — Democrat Barack Obama said Monday that as president he would send at least two more combat brigades to Afghanistan, where U.S. soldiers face rising violence and endured their deadliest attack in three years on Sunday.

The proposed force increase — about 7,000 troops — is part of Obama's plan to pull combat troops out of Iraq and focus on the growing threat from a resurgent al-Qaida in Afghanistan.

"As president, I would pursue a new strategy, and begin by providing at least two additional combat brigades to support our effort in Afghanistan," Obama said in an op-ed published Monday in The New York Times, a day before he plans a speech here on his vision for Iraq and Afghanistan.

"We need more troops, more helicopters, better intelligence-gathering and more nonmilitary assistance to accomplish the mission there," Obama said. "I would not hold our military, our resources and our foreign policy hostage to a misguided desire to maintain permanent bases in Iraq."

Republican presidential candidate John McCain is planning to speak about his plan for Afghanistan on Thursday. He told reporters Monday, "I think we need to do whatever is necessary and that could entail more troops."

U.S. commanders have said they need up to three more brigades in Afghanistan — or as many as 10,000 additional troops — to both train Afghan forces and battle the insurgency.

"Ending the war is essential to meeting our broader strategic goals, starting in Afghanistan and Pakistan, where the Taliban is resurgent and al-Qaida has a safe haven," Obama wrote. "Iraq is not the central front in the war on terrorism, and it never has been."

There are currently 36,000 U.S. forces in Afghanistan, including 17,500 serving with the NATO-led coalition and another 18,500 conducting training and counterinsurgency.

The Associated Press