Thread: CONFIRMED the Trans Pacific Partnership trade treaty will ALLOW MASS IMMIGRATION

Republicans Open to Giving Obama 'Fast-Track' Trade Authority

Democrats appear skeptical of granting the president the trade promotion agreement he pushed for during the State of the Union address.

U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman testifies before the Senate Finance Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday.

By Gabrielle LevyJan. 27, 2015 | 6:55 p.m. EST+ More

Both sides of the Capitol were witness to an unusual scene Tuesday, as Republicans praised the efforts of a member of the Obama administration while Democrats looked on with skepticism.

U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman testified before the Senate Finance Committee in the morning before crossing the rotunda to face questioning in front of the House Ways and Means Committee on the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a trade deal involving 12 countries that has been under negotiation since 2005.

Republican majorities in both committees sounded amenable to granting President Barack Obama the trade promotion agreement he pushed for during the State of the Union address last week — an approval considered essential to reaching a deal.

Under the so-called “fast-track” authority, Congress can set the terms under which the U.S. negotiates but would strip the legislative branch of the ability to either filibuster or amend a trade agreement and require lawmakers to take an up-or-down vote.

“When the United States sits down at the negotiating table, everybody at that table has to trust us,” said House Ways and Means Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wis. “They have to know the deal the administration wants is the deal Congress wants. …

We can’t be negotiating with ourselves, we have to maintain a united front.”

[READ: Democrats Push Parental Leave for Federal Workers]

The economies of the 12 countries involved in the TPP — Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the U.S. and Vietnam — comprise 40 percent of the global economy and a third of the world’s trade.

Proponents of the partnership said the deal is critical to opening new markets for U.S. products, to strengthening manufacturing, encouraging job growth and protecting intellectual property.

“Ultimately, it puts us in the driver’s seat in terms of setting the rules of the road,” Froman said.

But Democrats, some of whom have long expressed vehement opposition to the TPP and the fast-track authority, said negotiations have been conducted under a veil of secrecy and could result in a deal that encourages job outsourcing.

“The fast-track procedure is designed to limit public scrutiny; it gives up congressional constitutional authority to review the TPP,” said Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., a leading opponent of the TPA, in a statement following the State of the Union address.

Members from both sides of the aisle sought increased transparency, asking Froman to grant them and their approved staff members more time to examine documents related to the negotiations.

Supporters of the deal say a free-trade agreement in the Pacific will put pressure on China on the global market, while requiring high standards among members.

[ALSO: Is the Senate Back to Work?]

But the Obama administration’s refusal to label China a currency manipulator has stoked fears the deal won’t put enforceable rules in place to prevent countries from artificially deflating prices of their products, disadvantaging U.S. exports and encouraging manufacturers to move jobs overseas where environmental and labor regulations are looser.

And Sen. Ben Cardin, D-Md., said he worried whether three of the countries — Brunei, Malaysia and Vietnam — are serial human rights abusers who cannot be counted on to comply with labor standards.

Others are concerned the rules strengthening intellectual property protections would run afoul of open Internet principles and stifle innovation.

With strong Republican support, an eventual vote on the fast-track authority will likely succeed in the House, but Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley, the No. 2 Republican on the Finance Committee, said he expected a struggle to get 60 votes needed to pass without threat of filibuster in the upper chamber.

"I can't support a TPP agreement if we do not at the same time enact new statutory law that includes objective criteria to define and enforce against currency manipulation," said Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.

Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., has also said he would oppose the deal.

But House Democrats say their support will depend a lot on the process and how transparent the administration is in the ongoing negotiations.

“The administration needs to work with members of both sides of the aisle to make sure that the process is transparent and members are fully aware of what’s being included,” said House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer, D-Md. “Steps are being taken to raise the confidence and, if that occurs, I think it’s possible for a significant number of members to support both TPA and TPP.”

http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/...rade-authority

http://www.alipac.us/f9/trade-agreem...agenda-318824/

NO! NO! NO! NO! NO MORE FREE TRADE TREASON AGREEMENTS!

PEOPLE IN (Immigration) + JOBS OUT (Free Trade Treason) = BANKRUPT NATION

ACTION ALERT MELANIE OUBRE Senate and House Committees could approve 'fast-track' for trade deal as early as tomorrow -- Tweet and post on Facebook TODAY!

Dear NumbersUSA activist, The Senate Finance and House Ways & Means Committees could vote as early as tomorrow on legislation that would "fast-track" the Trans-Pacific Partnership being negotiated by the Obama Administration and 11 other countries. Should Congress approve "fast-track", it would grant Pres. Obama full negotiating authority over the free trade agreement, jeopardizing jobs and wages for American workers. President Obama has made it abundantly clear that he believes he has virtually unfettered authority to change U.S. immigration law. As we've learned from past free trade agreements, the Trans-Pacific Partnership could be used by the Administration to further reduce jobs and wages for U.S. workers and instead reserve certain jobs for foreign workers. Congress must not give up its authority to debate and amend the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement. Tweet and Facebook your Senators and urge them not to approve fast-tracking of the TPP! 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Lawmakers Near Deal to Give Obama Fast-Track Authority on Trade Pact

By JONATHAN WEISMAN APRIL 16, 2015



Before a Senate Finance Committee hearing on the trade pact Thursday: Senator Robert Menendez, seated at table, and standing from left, Senators Benjamin L. Cardin of Maryland and Ron Wyden of Oregan; Treasury Secretary Jacob J. Lew; and Michael Froman, the United States trade representative.CreditStephen Crowley/The New York Times


WASHINGTON — The leaders of Congress’s tax-writing committees neared agreement Thursday on legislation to give President Obama “fast-track” authority to negotiate an ambitious trade accord with 11 other Pacific nations, beginning what is sure to be one of the toughest legislative battles of his last 19 months in office.

The “trade promotion authority” bill — likely to be unveiled Thursday afternoon — would give Congress the power to vote on the Trans-Pacific Partnership once it is completed, but would deny lawmakers the chance to amend what would be the largest trade deal since the North American Free Trade Agreement.

Senator Orrin Hatch, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, and Representative Paul D. Ryan of Wisconsin, chairman of the Ways and Means Committee, had to agree to stringent requirements for the trade deal to win over Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon, the ranking Democrat on the finance panel. Those requirements included a human rights negotiating objective that has never existed on trade agreements, according to lawmakers involved in the talks.

The legislation would also make any final trade agreement public for 60 days before the president signs it, and up to four months before Congress votes. If the agreement, negotiated by the United States Trade Representative, fails to meet the objectives laid out by Congress — on labor, environmental and human rights standards — a 60-vote majority in the Senate could shut off “fast-track” trade rules and open the deal to amendments.

“We got assurances that U.S.T.R. and the president will be negotiating within the parameters defined by Congress,” said Representative Dave Reichert, Republican of Washington and a senior member of the Ways and Means Committee. Referring to the trade promotion authority, he added: “And if those parameters are somehow or in some way violated during the negotiations, if we get a product that’s not adhering to the T.P.A. agreement, than we have switches where we can cut it off.”

Mr. Reichert said the Ways and Means Committee will formally draft the legislation next week.

Even with those concessions, the fight to get the trade promotion bill to the president’s desk will be difficult and emotional, badly dividing the Democratic Party’s labor base and putting Hillary Clinton in a quandary. Many prominent Democrats have come out against one of the biggest priorities of their president. Representative Sander Levin of Michigan, the ranking Democrat on the House Ways and Means Committee, was notably absent from trade negotiations.

The A.F.L.-C.I.O. and virtually every major union have vowed a fierce fight, including a six-figure advertising campaign to pressure 16 selected senators and 36 House members to oppose trade promotion authority, the A.F.L.-C.I.O. announced Thursday.

“We can’t afford to pass fast track, which would lead to more lost jobs and lower wages. We want Congress to keep its leverage over trade negotiations — not rubber stamp a deal that delivers profits for global corporations, but not good jobs for working people,” said Richard Trumka, A.F.L.-C.I.O. president.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/17/bu...rtnership.html

http://www.alipac.us/f12/gop-chairme...e-bill-319160/

Originally Posted by JohnDoe2

http://www.alipac.us/f12/gop-chairme...e-bill-319160/

The header for this thread says that it is confirmed that mass immigration is ALLOWED in this bill. I am confused.