DUBUQUE, Iowa -- Bidding for a congressional seat held by a free-trade Republican for nearly two decades, Democrat Bruce Braley has gained an edge by taking the opposite view: bashing globalization.
In one of the most closely watched congressional races, Mr. Braley has made opposition to the Bush administration's free-trade agenda a centerpiece of his campaign. He has run ads blaming the state's job losses on President Bush's "unfair trade deals." He has urged more focus on labor rights in national trade policy and talked of using economic sanctions to keep America competitive. "Our workers aren't on a level playing field," he says.
Mr. Braley's stance has helped propel the 49-year-old lawyer, who is running against an unabashedly free-trade Republican, into position to reverse recent trends and secure a Democratic win in Iowa's First District. His strong showing not only underscores how trade concerns have emerged as a central issue in many of this year's races but also suggests a more-protectionist U.S. trade policy if Democrats take Congress.
Even if Democrats don't win control, the campaign rhetoric may have a lasting effect, because some Republicans are finding it more painful politically to defend free trade.
The trend is worrying the business community. Top financial-services executives identified "protectionism" as the biggest threat to continued economic growth, after terrorism, according to a recent Financial Services Forum survey. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is spending about $10 million nationwide in the final days of the campaign to rally supporters for candidates sympathetic to business priorities, including free trade.
Democrats must pick up 15 seats to regain control of the House, and in more than a dozen districts up for grabs, trade issues are giving them an edge over Republicans damaged by Iraq and the scandal involving former Rep. Mark Foley and messages he sent congressional pages. Similar forces are roiling the fight for the Senate, where six additional seats would put Democrats in charge.
In western New York, Tom Reynolds, head of the Republican House campaign committee, is fighting a protectionist businessman and may lose. Richard Pombo, a California Republican who cruised to victory two years ago, is facing an eleventh-hour challenge from a Democrat pledging to "change our trade policy" so American farmers can better compete against foreign producers. In the Senate, which approves many trade treaties, Democrat Sherrod Brown is poised to unseat Ohio Republican Mike DeWine by capitalizing on worker resentment over globalization.
Pew Research data show the sense of vulnerability among workers. A recent poll shows low-skilled U.S. workers are over 40% more likely to believe their jobs could be sent offshore.
Trade is a perennial political dividing line. But the issue is taking on importance this year, amid increased public anxiety over globalization and activism by trade opponents. The political committee formed by the Citizens Trade Campaign, a labor, farm and environmental coalition, dispatched organizers after Labor Day to a dozen battleground districts to rally free-trade opponents. Protectionist sentiments and economic nationalism appear to be emerging as symbols of a broader but less well-defined sense of economic unease, which is particularly apparent in the Midwest this year.
The Republican-controlled Congress has already showed its sensitivity to the issue, helping derail a deal by Arab-owned Dubai Ports World to purchase the commercial operations at five U.S. ports and approving millions of dollars to build a wall to stem the tide of illegal immigrants from Mexico. Republican leaders have put aside initiatives on the Bush free-trade agenda, delaying action on a trade pact with Peru and pushing the White House to commit to a plan to possibly curtail imports from Vietnam.
The trend may become more pronounced if Democrats take one or both houses of Congress. In the 1990s, a bloc of House Democrats regularly supported free-trade initiatives like the North American Free Trade Agreement. These numbers have fallen as doubts increase about globalization, with only 15 Democrats backing the Central American Free Trade Agreement in 2005. The emergence of candidates like Mr. Braley could accelerate the Democrats' transformation.
Trade policy may be the biggest issue in which a Democratic majority in the House could make headway against the president in the next Congress. That is because President Bush's ability to send trade deals to Congress for a vote without amendments will expire in July. Congress will decide whether to renew his authority, with action beginning in the House.
That would give Democrats leverage to seek Bush commitments to help U.S. workers, such as putting labor rights and environmental protection alongside corporate concerns like patent protections in negotiations with other countries. Democrats might seek an overhaul of programs to help workers who lose jobs to foreign competition.
In Iowa, Mr. Braley's antiglobalization theme is striking a chord among voters in this rural district, which wraps from Davenport up the Mississippi River to Dubuque and west to Waterloo, Mr. Braley's hometown. Since 1990, the district has been represented by Republican Rep. Jim Nussle, a supporter of free trade who is now waging an uphill battle for governor.
Mr. Braley's own story has helped frame the populist themes of his campaign against his Republican opponent, businessman Mike Whalen. Mr. Braley grew up in a small farming community, where his parents struggled to make ends meet after his father shattered his leg on the job. The younger Mr. Braley washed dishes and drove a dump truck to help pay for college.
Iowa's uneven economic performance has warmed voters to Mr. Braley's message, which also emphasizes protecting Social Security and raising the minimum wage. While pockets of the state are prospering, the number of manufacturing jobs remains far below its 2001 peak, as companies have pared work forces in the face of foreign competition. A May announcement by Iowa icon Maytag, a unit of Whirlpool Corp., that it plans to lay off 2,000 workers in the state added to residents' unease.
Even Mr. Whalen, who scoffs that Mr. Braley is living in a "protectionist fantasyland," concurs that "deep down, there is that kind of angst" over trade and the economy.
This is the first bid for public office by Messrs. Braley and Whalen. The race is tight, but Mr. Braley's stance on trade appears to be winning over swing voters like Ken Brimeyer, who could make the difference tomorrow.
Mr. Brimeyer runs the loading dock at Flexsteel Industries Inc., a furniture maker in Dubuque. He twice voted for Rep. Nussle, but now plans to vote Democratic. One reason: President Bush's free-trade agenda. In the past four years, the number of jobs at Flexsteel has fallen 60%, to 250, as much of the upholstering work once done at the plant has been shifted to China, where labor is cheaper. "It makes you angry," Mr. Brimeyer says.
Messrs. Braley and Whalen have aired dueling ads that sharpened their differences on trade. In mid-October, a Braley television ad focused on the state's job losses and accused Mr. Whalen of supporting Bush-backed "trade deals that ship Iowa jobs overseas" and being "out of touch with working families."
Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez, campaigning in the district for Mr. Whalen, issued a rebuke several days later. "These trade agreements work," Mr. Gutierrez said. "We're talking about real jobs here, and we should not be playing with protectionist polices that put these jobs at risk."
Mr. Whalen's radio ad alleged Mr. Braley's approach would harm Iowa farmers and manufacturers who depend on exports. He pointed to the Alcoa Inc. plant in Davenport, where 2,000 workers make aviation parts for Boeing Co. and Airbus. "Without international trade, those Iowa jobs would be gone," Mr. Whalen, who toured the plant in mid-September, said in his ad.
Last week, a U.S. Chamber of Commerce team canvassed the district and blanketed it with mailings touting Mr. Whalen's free-trade credentials. But chamber strategist Doug Loon acknowledges the race is tight and frets about the effect on trade policy if Mr. Braley wins. The seat "is clearly in jeopardy," he says.
Write to Greg Hitt at greg.hitt@wsj.comWall Street Journal
