Why hire a PR firm when you have the Washington Post?

A few weeks ago I pointed out the Washington Post's editorial in support of the free trade deal with Colombia.  On Sunday there was an interview published with Colombian president Alvaro Uribe, a man who has openly acknowledged having ties to paramilitary groups in the past.  Here are some of the questions this hard-hitting PR flak --er, I mean "reporter" had for Mr. Uribe:

• Haven't you stuck your neck out to be a good US ally in the war on terrorism and the war on drugs? Are you thinking about alternatives  to your alliance with the US if this [trade deal] does not go through?

• Try to explain to the American people how important the [deal] is to your country --what it means in terms of growth and how damaging it would be to you, who have been a strong US ally if the agreement is rejected?

• You put so much on the line for an ally, and Washington doesn't come through for you?

Today Mr. Uribe's administration is in the news again for another scandal (they've been having to deal with recent revelations that many other people in his administration have ties to paramilitary groups also.  The documentation of corruption and human rights violations in Colombia under the Uribe administration is compelling.  Here's just a sampling:

Reuters: Colombia scandal creeps closer to Uribe (April 2007)

National Security Archive: Documents Implicate Colombian Government in Chiquita Terror Scandal (March 2007)

Washington Post: Paramilitary Ties to Elite in Colombia (March 2007)

Council on Foreign Relations: Colombia Scandal Imperils US Alliance (May 2007)

The House Democrats are right to block a trade deal with a country so corrupt.  Uribe is not a honorable character and we should not be validating his administration with any kind of alliance.