Bush signs trade bill

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Tuesday, Aug. 2, 2005 | 11:05 a.m.

WASHINGTON -- President Bush signed a hard-fought free trade pact with five Central American nations and the Dominican Republic today, saying the measure would "advance peace and prosperity throughout the region."

Bush's signature at a ceremony in the East Room of the White House put the final touch on the Central American Free Trade Agreement, a measure approved by Congress last week with just a two-vote margin in the House after a bruising battle over the future of U.S. trade policy.

That 217-215 vote handed the president an important political victory after months of intense lobbying by the president and his trade officials.