Hawkeye Republican

BEHOLDEN BY INTEREST GROUPS: We've all heard the mantra that President Bush and the Republican Party is beholden to that evil Religious Right. But we never hear about the Left being beholden to their own interest groups. Consider this piece from Wednesday's Opinion Journal's Political Diary (boldface added for emphasis):

Appearing anywhere in defense of the Central American Free Trade Agreement is hazardous duty for a member of Congress, given the intensity of public opposition to the treaty from unions and protectionists.

That's what made Rep. Henry Cuellar's stirring defense of CAFTA on a live C-SPAN call-in show this morning so impressive. A freshman Democrat from the border region of Texas, Mr. Cuellar stood his ground as every caller berated him for his support of the treaty. "The key to keeping the U.S. economy vibrant is to find new markets for our goods," he said. "When you look at the trade with Central America, their goods are coming in duty-free, but we face tariffs on our exports. Right now, it's a one-way street. With CAFTA we'll be able to export more, and more jobs can be created."

Mr. Cuellar took his stand on the same morning that the Hill newspaper was reporting that every major union in the country had written House Democratic leaders warning that organized labor will withdraw support from any Democrat who votes for CAFTA. "I appreciate the opinion of my friends in labor," Mr. Cuellar told C-SPAN. "But we cannot politicize this type of agreement."

That high-mindedness won't prevent liberal groups from going after Mr. Cuellar in next March's Democratic primary. In the 2004 primary, Mr. Cuellar defeated Ciro Rodriguez, the chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus by about 100 votes. Mr. Rodriguez's former colleagues are already raising money to avenge his defeat.