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War is Waged
With at least an additional $95,000 of Lindner money in the Democratic Party's bank accounts, the U.S. Trade Representative took the banana case to the World Trade Organization. The Clinton Administration was ready to start a global trade war on Lindner's side. -
Conflict arising
Carl and Keith Lindner wrote to Kantor again, expressing their dissatisfaction with proposals put forth by the Europeans to resolve the banana dispute. The Lindners thought that war should be waged as a group force, with Chiquita and its ally, the U.S., on one side and the EU Commission on the other. -
The European market flooded
The Hawaiian four-member congressional committee sent a letter to Kantor saying they were ready to talk about "international courses of action" against the E.U. Since Hawaii is the only U.S. state that produces bananas, Hawaii played a big part in the banana war. Because Chiquita, Dole, and other producers had overwhelmed the European market. The overflow came to the United States, causing retail prices to go down. -
The Meeting
The Lindners advised Kantor's staff that it was very important that they should form a meeting for 20 minutes. This meeting did not happen, but nine days later, on a Sunday night, Lindner was sitting behind Clinton at a presidential gala in Ford's Theatre. -
Taxes
At a United States Trade Representative (USTR) meeting visited by trade organizations and Washington lobbyists, many interest groups spoke out against the taxes, saying they would hurt or possibly destroy their businesses. -
Trade Groups are Dropped from the List
Products imported by Gillette, Mattel, and fur retailers, as well as those of about two dozen other trade groups and industries that testified at the meeting or urged the USTR, were cut from the list. -
EU's Policies
Ecuador won the World Trade Organization permission to hit the European Union with bans worth $20.6 million a year to cover losses in sales caused by the EU's banana import orders. WTO negotiators also told Ecuador it could impose the sanctions not only on goods imported from the EU�s 15 member states but also in the area of service and intellectual property rights. -
The Final List
When the final list was published, most of the goods once proposed for high taxes had been stricken from the list. Only nine types of products were covered for high taxes. Trade experts outside the EU generally agree that the restrictive banana policies do violate free-trade rules. Four global trade panels have reached that conclusion over the years. But restrictive trade policies are hardly peculiar to Europe. The U.S. has its own, while restricting sugar and other products.
