Byline: Pablo Bachelet

Oct. 10--Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Tuesday made an impassioned appeal for Congress to pass trade agreements with Peru, Panama and Colombia, warning a failure would have dire strategic consequences for U.S. interests in Latin America.

The Bush administration is stepping up its lobbying campaign in a difficult environment, with polls showing Americans are concerned that more trade pacts will cause job losses and many Latin Americans are skeptical over the ability of free-market reforms and more open trade to improve their lot. A referendum on a free trade agreement with the United States in Costa Rica passed this weekend by a narrow ...