Bill Clinton, Weather Vane for Trade Winds

Pres. Clinton yesterday warned business and political leaders that they need to address the environmental and social concerns of average citizens as they pursue a more open trading system, a call that comes as environmentalists, labor unions, and a host of other groups make plans to demonstrate against the World Trade Organization during its upcoming meeting set to begin in Seattle on Nov. 30. Clinton, speaking in New Zealand at the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation trade summit of Pacific Rim leaders, also called on the WTO, World Bank, and International Monetary Fund to drop their veils of secrecy. Commerce Secretary William Daley, in a separate address: "It's pretty obvious there's been a breakdown in [U.S.] political support. People see layoffs, not payoffs, when it comes to trade."