One of a few international trade agreements considered by Congress over the past few weeks—the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)—would include twelve countries, about 40 percent of the world economy and have a significant impact on the global and domestic economy for many years to come. So why is it that more people haven’t heard about it?
One of a few international trade agreements considered by Congress over the past few weeks—the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)—would include 12 countries, about 40 percent of the world economy and have a significant impact on the global and domestic economy for many years to come. So why is it that more people haven’t heard about it?
The simple answer is that Congress and the administration don’t want anyone to know about it. They’re trying to quickly sneak agreements like the TPP through the Congressional process, behind closed doors in a process called Fast Track—it’s a bad idea for working families, the environment and the economy.
To start, Fast Track eliminates one of the most important aspects of the democratic process: Congress’ power to amend bad trade deals. Fast Track takes away the power to send the agreements back to the executive branch with instructions for improvement.
It’s a policy that gives the president the power to negotiate behind closed doors many trade agreements as it can during a given time period and send them to Congress.
Trade negotiations should be transparent. The agreements reached should be fair, uphold labor standards that protect workers and their jobs, preserve environmental protections, and ensure consumer safeguards aren’t weakened.
This leads to another point that Fast Track would undermine environmental protections we’ve worked hard to protect over generations. For example, foreign corporations could have the right to sue governments over environmental, climate, and other protections and policies that they claim reduce the value of their investments. Now is not the time to give away environmental protections to the highest bidder.
Lastly, bad trade deals in the past have hurt the U.S. economy. Any new trade agreement the U.S. gets involved in must be negotiated with the middle class, the economy and the environment in mind.
Freedom from forced labor, banning of child labor, and battling all forms of workplace discrimination should be enshrined, not only as worker rights, but also as human rights. It’s not enough to ensure those standards within our own borders. They must also be promoted and enforced by any trade agreement seeking to be truly fair. Ensuring these kinds of fair labor standards are far from guaranteed when the U.S. enters far-reaching, binding trade agreements like the TPP.
It’s not too much to ask that trade doesn’t have to undermine worker protections, the economy and the environment. We can stand up for fair, transparent trade policy that doesn’t engage the U.S. in a race to the bottom. Fast Track is the opposite of that. That’s why it is wrong for our workers, economy and environment.
Lee Anderson is the Director of Legislation and Policy for the BlueGreen Alliance.