In the push to pass the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA), the Bush administration blocked the publishing of a report that could have undercut their case, reports The New York Times' Juan Forero.

As the White House lobbied Congress to win support for a Central American trade pact, the United States Labor Department tried for more than a year to block the release of reports that harshly criticized labor standards in the region.

The reports, by a labor advocacy group, the International Labor Rights Fund, were commissioned by the Labor Department, and concluded that working conditions in five Central American nations and the Dominican Republic were dismal, and that enforcement of labor laws was weak.

In a statement Thursday, the Labor Department called the findings biased and flawed. Dirk Fillpot, a spokesman for the department's Bureau of International Labor Affairs, said the study was "rife with unsubstantiated and unverifiable claims, questionable statistical data, and biased statements of findings and conclusions."

The Labor Department's condemnation drew a quick rebuke from Senator Byron L. Dorgan, a North Dakota Democrat. "The reports describe labor conditions that would be harmful, not helpful, for passage of Cafta," he said, referring to the Central American Free Trade Agreement. "So they decided to deep-six it."

Nevertheless, CAFTA passed the Senate by a 54-45 margin last night and now heads to the House, where its chances of passage are less clear.