Clintons agree to disagree on free trade

The presidential campaign of Hillary Clinton admitted that her husband Bill, the former US president, supports a free trade agreement with Colombia that his wife strenuously opposes.

The acknowledgment adds new hurdles to the New York senator’s bid to woo Democratic voters in Pennsylvania and elsewhere who believe free trade agreements have eliminated thousands of US jobs.

Mrs Clinton told union activists she would do everything in her power to defeat the Colombia Free Trade Agreement now before Congress.

Her campaign spokesman, Jay Carson, said: “Like other married couples who disagree on issues from time to time, she disagrees with her husband on this issue.”

Mrs Clinton trails Barack Obama in a fiercely-contested primary contest for the Democratic nomination for the White House.