President Clinton won a major victory Nov. 17 when the House passed the North American Free Trade Agreement 234-200. The president had made NAFTA a key issue in his presidency, although it also had been pushed by the two Republican presidents who preceded him.
Earlier, Vice President Al Gore had debated the issue with NAFTA's greatest foe, billionaire industrialist Ross Perot, who claimed NAFTA would suck thousands of jobs out of the U.S. and send them to Mexico. The debate on CNN's Larry King Live was said to sway public opinion toward NAFTA despite fierce opposition from organized labor.
The Senate gave final passage to NAFTA Nov. 20 by a vote of 61-38.
NAFTA will create one of the world's largest free trading zones, including all of Canada, the United States, and Mexico. In backing the plan, the president said the American economy can compete, and predicted NAFTA will create jobs in the United States.
