omefront situation, versus a Democratic Party candidate stressing domestic concerns - save for the fact that candidate Bill Clinton promoted himself as a self-proclaimed "New Democrat." In practical terms, to be a New Democrat involved marrying traditional Democratic Party social welfare concerns with moderate Republican Party pro-business programs - including international free trade in general principle. Thus, when NAFTA was finalized during the period immediately preceding the November presidential election, Clinton was positioned to steal the thunder from the incumbent's accomplishment by stating publicly that he would support it - with the exception of minor reservations in the areas of environmental protection, labor rights and enforcement procedures. It was a masterful political stroke, for third-party candidate Ross Perot had already come out in principle for a NAFTA-type arrangement. With all three major candidates pro-NAFTA, free trade became a non-issue for use against one another.
By September 1993 the political landscape had changed. Less than a year in office, Bill Clinton had overwhelmed the nation with a flurry of proposals - BTU taxes, budget battles, national vocational service, many more - few of which he followed-up on with equal consistency. As the time drew near for Congress to confirm the Executive Branch's approval of NAFTA, there were no clear signals from Clinton on how strongly he felt about an issue that, politically speaking, he could deny at any moment as the brainchild of a deposed Republican administration.
Although Congress does not like to appear subservient to its Chief Executive, the ensuing NAFT
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