Speaking at AS/COA's 7th Annual Latin America Conference, New York Congressman Joseph Crowley emphasized the importance of trade and investment for boosting U.S. relations with Latin America. "We are finally waking up to the importance of economic and social development in our own neighborhood," said Crowley.

Secretary of Commerce Carlos M. Gutierrez, speaking at the James A. Baker Institute for Public Policy, discussed the importance of trade to the U.S. economy. He also spoke about free trade in the Americas, saying rejection of a free-trade agreement with Colombia "would be not just a step backwards, but one of the biggest foreign policy mistakes of our time in our region."

Former Mexican Foreign Minister Jorge Castañeda, author of Ex Mex: From Migrants to Immigrants, played a firsthand role in attempts to forge a U.S.-Mexican immigration deal. He says reform could come in time, but U.S. leaders remain hesitant: "Who wants to take a leadership position on this and then get slammed in Iowa?"

Without comprehensive immigration reform at the federal level, U.S. states are now passing their own legislation. In the first of a series of U.S. immigration updates, AS/COA outlines how new state laws affect public benefits, employment, and identification.

On November 7, after months of negotiations and debate, the U.S.-Peru Trade Promotion Agreement passed the U.S. House of Representatives by a vote of 285 to 132. The bill is expected to receive Senate consideration shortly.

The Bush administration continues to urge congressional approval of free-trade agreements with Peru, Colombia, and Panama. But while action on the Peru deal appears imminent, the Colombia and Panama deals face obstacles. A new AS/COA update outlines congressional action on the agreements.

COA's Director of Government Relations Brian Wanko writes that Congress has the opportunity to make a lasting impact on Latin America's prosperity and development by supporting free-trade agreements with Panama, Peru, and Colombia.