McCain chides Democrats on NAFTA

AUSTIN, Texas, Feb. 29 (UPI) -- Presumptive Republican presidential nominee John McCain Friday hammered his Democratic rivals on trade, a published report said.

The Politico reported the Arizona senator lashed out at Democratic Sens. Hillary Clinton of New York and Barack Obama of Illinois for their criticism of the North American Free Trade Agreement.

"I want to tell our Canadian friends, I want to tell our friends in Mexico and other trading partners around the world that I will negotiate and conclude free trade agreements and I will not, I will not, after entering into solemn agreements, go and say that I will abrogate those agreements," McCain said at a campaign stop in Austin, Texas.

McCain said renegotiating NAFTA, as the Democrat candidates have suggested, could compromise the support of the Canadians in the war on terrorism.

"I think it's important to recognize that all these things are inter-connected," McCain said while campaigning in the Lone Star State before its presidential primaries Tuesday.

Former Texas Republican Sen. Phil Gramm chided Clinton and Obama for what he called not believing more in American workers and ingenuity.

"If we can't compete with Canada, who can we compete with?" Gramm asked. "Are these people proposing that we go build a wall around America and hide under a rock somewhere?"