Washington — When U.S. Rep. Cedric Richmond and the other members of the Congressional Black Caucus visited the White House last week, they talked with President Barack Obama about poverty rates and the criminal justice system.
They also heard a pitch from him about an issue that’s high on his agenda: foreign trade.
Obama and almost all the caucus members, including Richmond, are Democrats — but on trade policy, the partisan bond suffers serious strain. In fact, when Obama touted his trade proposals in his State of the Union address to Congress last month, it was the Republicans who rose to their feet to applaud, while most Democrats sat on their hands.
The overall pattern is reflected, with variations, within the congressional delegation from Louisiana, a state where trade plays a major role in the economy.
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