After yaears of contentious debate, Congress passed free-trade agreements with Colombia, Panama and South Korea that were originally drafted under the Bush administration in 2006.

Nancy Pelosi (D-California) voted against the deals, arguing that road development and countering China’s currency manipulation are key to U.S. job creation, not expanding “free trade.”

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada) argued that America will lose approximately 213,000 jobs because of the South Korean and Colombian deals.

Representative Michael Michaud (D-Maine) adds that passing both the free trade agreements and a trade adjustment assistance program is illogical.

Congressman Dave Camp (R-Michigan) maintains that Americans must take advantage of every opportunity to revive the economy, and that many developed countries such as Canada and Japan have greatly expanded trade agreements globally, while the U.S. has lagged behind.

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, (R-Virginia) also voted in support of the free trade agreements. Cantor argues that President Obama must reduce regulation and halt tax increases, so that businesses have more freedom to create jobs.

Initially, President Obama was reluctant to support the U.S./Colombia trade deal as the country continues to be the most dangerous country in the world for trade unionists, despite alleged reductions in paramilitary killings.

The agreement would also continue to redistribute land in favor of large corporations, according to Witness for Peace, an American not for profit agency focusing on U.S. and Latin American relations.

Furthermore, the agreements will only augment the inhumane labor conditions in Colombia, which are already below international standards. Many Colombian activists claim that a free-trade deal would exacerbate the existing poverty and increase the imbalance between the poor and the rich.

Manuel Rozental, a Colombian doctor and activist, wrote in a local newspaper that the agreements would amount to an endorsement of the Colombian government, which is connected to “death squads, drug trafficking, corruption and crimes against humanity.”

As to the agreement with South Korea, there is dispute over the U.S. automobile industry, as jobs are expected to be lost to Korean imports and competition, according to the Joint Economic Committee of Congress.

President Obama and South Korean President Lee Myung-bak recently visited Michigan, the longtime center of automobile manufacturing, to assure workers that they would not lose their jobs under the agreement. The future will demonstrate if South Koreans are interested in U.S. vehicles and if the two leaders are truthful in their assertion.

Concerning the Panama FTA, Michaud highlighted the fact that the country has one of the smallest populations in Latin America, and would be unable to compete with 350 million Americans. Additionally, Panama’s tax codes create a “safe-haven” for corporate tax evasion, another hypocritical action concerning job creation.

Language is important to consider, especially when politicians are addressing issues such as job creation. “Jobs for whom?” Americans may ask.

According to the Joint Economic Committee of Congress, the approved trade deals will produce jobs for the agricultural and service-based sectors, however, manufacturing jobs will be lost for middle class Americans and those lacking higher education.

The overall result is a dilemma. The Colombian FTA will produce American jobs and yet its operation is morally questionable; the South Korean and Panama agreements will create jobs in certain sectors while potentially causing losses in others.

Whatever the case may be, Congress was divided on the vote for the trade agreements, with Democrats in opposition and Republicans in favor; average Americans will soon find out if more jobs have indeed been created than lost.