House votes to delay Colombia trade pact

By Doug Palmer

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. House of Representatives voted on Thursday to indefinitely delay action on a free trade agreement with Colombia, a move the White House said it feared would kill the pact.

"Today's unprecedented and unfortunate action by the House of Representatives ... is damaging to our economy, our national security, and our relations with an important ally," President George W. Bush said in a statement that emphasized Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's role in the vote.

Colombia has received billions in U.S. aid to help combat its guerrilla insurgency and cocaine trade and is Washington's closest ally in a region where left-wing leaders are touting socialism to counter U.S. free-market proposals.

The House voted 224-195 to indefinitely delay consideration of the pact by eliminating a trade law requirement that Congress approve or reject the controversial deal within 90 days, including a 60-day deadline for House action.

"This vote today is a vote to kill the Colombia free trade agreement. Nothing more, nothing less," House Minority Leader John Boehner, an Ohio Republican, said, echoing comments from the White House and U.S. Trade Representative Susan Schwab.

Colombia's stock market closed down 1.63 percent on Thursday, due in part to news of the House vote.

The House vote was a victory for U.S. labor groups, a key Democratic Party constituency that strongly opposes the pact on grounds that Colombia has not done enough to stop killings of trade unionists and bring their murderers to justice.

But U.S. business groups have pushed hard for approval of the trade deal, which they said would level the playing field for U.S. exports in a fast-growing market.