CARTAGENA, Colombia—U.S. Republican presidential candidate John McCain promoted free trade Wednesday on a visit to Colombia that he was using to subtly score political points against Democrat Barack Obama.
McCain's push for congressional approval of a stalled U.S.-Colombian free trade agreement carried political risks, as voters in battleground states like Ohio and Michigan have been disenchanted by U.S. policies that have permitted manufacturers to ship jobs to countries where the labor is cheaper.
Taking advantage of a summer lull in the presidential campaign, McCain was on a trip this week to Colombia and Mexico. The Arizona senator visited a hospital and toured a port in Cartagena Wednesday.
He had left the country for Mexico before Colombia announced it rescued French-Colombian politician Ingrid Betancourt and three Americans from leftist guerrillas who had held them for years in secret jungle camps.
McCain was joined on his trip by two close Senate colleagues, Independent Joseph Lieberman of Connecticut and Republican Lindsey Graham of South Carolina.
All three men urged Congress to vote on the Colombia free trade pact, which they said would benefit the U.S. economy and reward a strong U.S. ally, Colombian President Alvaro Uribe.
"I am convinced that the Colombia Free Trade Agreement is good for America," Graham said, adding he was not always in favor of free trade because his state had suffered job losses in the textile industry.
McCain said he would help those Americans who lost their jobs to foreign trade get training for a new job.
"I am committed to getting every single American who has been displaced from his or her job by foreign competition to get them a new job and a better future," McCain said.
McCain has avoided making political attacks on Obama while in a foreign country, but that self-imposed gag rule did not extend to his airplane.
On the flight to Cartagena Monday night, he called Obama a trade "protectionist" and his campaign advisers have questioned Obama's newfound commitment to the North American Free Trade Agreement.
Obama said during his primary battle against rival Democrat Hillary Clinton that he would he would reopen negotiations. But now that he has won his party's nomination, he has backed away from that position.
He does, however, oppose the U.S.-Colombia trade deal. An Obama adviser said he opposes it because it contains inadequate protection for labor leaders, some of whom have been targeted for assassination.
"We need to do more to sustain and enhance folks at bottom of these societies," adviser Dan Restrepo said in a conference call.
McCain is seeking to boost his standing among Hispanics, many of whom have been moving to Obama's side after largely supporting Clinton during the Democratic primary campaign.
His campaign released a Spanish radio advertisement to air in Florida in which Tony Villamil, the ex-director of Tourism, Commerce and Economic Affairs of Florida, talks of the importance of trade and McCain's support for the U.S.-Colombia accord.
"Remember who stands for prosperity in Florida, our country and our hemisphere," Villamil says in the ad. "His name is John McCain."
In Washington, McCain took steps to improve his campaign structure by promoting strategist Steve Schmidt to the No. 2 position.
Schmidt is a battle-hardened political operative, having served as California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's campaign manager and as an aide in President Bush's White House.
Some experts saw the move as an attempt to reassure Republicans in Washington, who have been concerned that the McCain campaign has lacked a consistent message.
McCain is scheduled to meet Thursday with Mexican President Felipe Calderon in Mexico City, where trade and immigration will top the agenda.
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