More on the one year anniversary of an abrupt halt to jobs, this time from the Wall Street Journal:

The Obama Administration's top trade negotiator said the U.S. was working quickly to resolve a damaging trade spat with Mexico, one of several obstacles to the president's goal of doubling U.S. exports within five years. "We understand the sense of urgency," said U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk after a speech at the National Press Club. He didn't specify what measures the White House was taking to resolve the Mexico issue. Business groups warned Tuesday that U.S. companies hurt by punitive tariffs imposed by Mexico a year ago are at risk of having to lay off thousands of workers unless the dispute is resolved soon. A bipartisan group of lawmakers has also called on the administration to act, citing job losses in their states.

The White House has set a goal of adding two million jobs to the economy by doubling exports...But the administration faces a lengthy list of trade issues—and opposition to trade-opening deals from congressional Democrats and labor-union allies. In addition to the Mexico dispute, the White House has 30 days to negotiate a deal with Brazil to avoid retaliatory tariffs on about 100 U.S. products, including cars, cotton and certain agricultural items. Free-trade agreements with South Korea, Colombia and Panama remain stalled in the Senate several years after they were introduced by the Bush administration. And Mr. Kirk said it was unlikely that the Doha round of global trade-opening talks would come to fruition this year.

John Murphy is quoted in the article, summing it up quite nicely "On trade, when we stand still we fall behind." Or as Myron Brilliant put it on a different trade deal "we need to get off the sidelines and get in the game."