Business Presses for US Vote on China Trade Bill

Big business stepped up pressure on Senate Republican Leader Trent Lott to schedule a July vote on a landmark China trade bill, after aides warned it may be set aside until September while lawmakers spar over a controversial sanctions measure and US spending priorities.

The Senate returned on Monday from its weeklong Independence Day recess, and despite weeks of lobbying by business, Lott has yet to set a date for legislation granting permanent normal trade relations (PNTR) to China.

Instead, Lott wants the Senate to complete work on key spending bills to fund the federal government before turning to PNTR.

The delay has outraged business groups, the White House and pro-trade Senate Democrats, who fear Lott will sideline the trade bill until just before the November election.

Analysts say that could undercut support for PNTR and maximize pressure on Democratic presidential hopeful Al Gore. Gore's support for PNTR has put him at odds with organised labour, a key Democratic constituency which fears closer ties with China will lead to massive US job losses.

Desperate for a vote before Congress' month-long August recess, the US Chamber of Commerce said on Monday it would intensify its lobbying effort on Capitol Hill.

"It's time to take a vote. We're working this on both sides of the aisle," Chamber President Thomas Donohue told reporters. He said it would be a "terrible mistake" to delay PNTR any longer and allow it to get bogged down in election politics.

But several Republican and Democratic aides said prospects for passage of the trade bill in July have dimmed. "Lott's got too many 747s in the air and only one runway," said one Republican aide.

There is little doubt over the outcome of the Senate vote once one is scheduled by Lott.

Unlike the House, where two out of three Democrats voted against the measure, the trade bill enjoys broad bipartisan support in the Senate. Sixty-three lawmakers in the 100-member Senate said in a recent Reuters poll that they would vote in favour of PNTR, enough to override a vote-blocking filibuster.

Once approved by the Senate and signed into law by President Bill Clinton, PNTR would end the annual ritual of reviewing Beijing's trade status and guarantee Chinese goods the same low-tariff access to US markets as products from nearly every other nation.

In exchange for the trade benefits, China would open a wide range of markets, from agriculture to telecommunications, to US businesses under the terms of a landmark agreement signed in November 1999. That agreement was a major step in China's bid to join the World Trade Organisation.

But hurdles remain.

Despite a White House veto threat, Lott of Mississippi is pressing for passage this week of legislation that would require the United States to impose sanctions on the Chinese government or private companies if they help nations develop or acquire nuclear, chemical and other weapons.

Senate Democrats, led by Max Baucus of Montana, have threatened to hold up the measure until Lott schedules a vote on the trade bill. Lobbyists said Lott may use Baucus's position as an "excuse" to hold up PNTR.

In addition, Senate aides said the appropriations process could get bogged down. Lott also hopes to push through tax cuts before Republicans meet in Philadelphia for their national convention, reducing the amount of time available to consider the trade bill.



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