Mike Fitzpatrick and CAFTA

Late this past Wednesday the Congress passed Cafta, the US free trade agreement with Central America. It passed 217-215, mostly along party lines (GOP for, Dems against). One interesting PA tidbit showed up in the Wall Street Journal. Fitzpatrick is the 8th district congressman mentioned in my previous post. His district is primarily in Bucks Co with one odd splotch in Montco.

Rep. Mike Fitzpatrick, a freshman Republican from Pennsylvania, had a harder time resisting. The congressman represents a suburban district outside Philadelphia, and worried about the impact of Cafta on the region. But in the midst of the protracted vote, Mr. Fitzpatrick took a call in the Republican cloakroom from Stephen Hadley, the president's national security adviser. Mir. Hadley stressed Cafta would improve regional security, solidfying Central America's move away from instability. The congressman voted "yes," becoming one of the final Cafta supporters to step forward.

(source: Hitt, Greg, "Last-Minute Deals Put Cafta Over the Top," Wall Street Journal, July 29, 2005, p. A4. See the 3rd from the last paragraph.)

I wonder if he was able to get something in return -- a little push in favor of keeping the Willow Grove Air Base or something for the Central American population around Norristown and Kennett Square (not in his district but regional issues all the same)? I sure hope so.