Stop the Job and Democracy Killing Free Trade Agreements

Stop the Job and Democracy Killing Free Trade Agreements (58)

Wednesday, 26 October 2016 00:00

Who Gets the Gains from Trade

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Let’s start the debate about trade policy on the right foot. Everyone I know is “for” trade. A better question is, “Who gets the gains from trade?”

A coalition of labor, environmental, civil rights groups and other progressive organizations with millions of members around the country united on Wednesday for a national call-in day to Congress to stop a potential lame-duck vote on the unpopular Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal.

President Barack Obama last week renewed his push for the Trans-Pacific Partnership, suggesting that it will be easier to pass the deal after the elections are over. The idea is that lawmakers will then be more insulated from political influence.

Every time politicians look to pass a new free trade agreement like the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), they reassure the American people that this time around, workers will be protected. But my research on and experiences in a small industrial town in Illinois—not to mention even a cursory glance at the broader data on the impact of such deals—reveals that “free trade” has been a nightmare for most of the American people.

“Free trade”: The elites are selling it but the public is longer buying it. Look at the support for Democrat Bernie Sanders and Republican Donald Trump, especially in light of Sanders’ surprise 20-point comeback in this week’s Michigan primary. With primaries coming soon in Ohio, Illinois, Missouri and North Carolina, will Sanders’ trade appeal resonate again?

Elizabeth Warren warns agreement 'would tilt the playing field even more in favor of big multinational corporations and against working families'

In an interview from Davos with Bloomberg TV on January 20, Chamber of Commerce President Tom Donohue, a top lobbyist for the pro-corporate-power Trans-Pacific Partnership [TPP] agreement, assured viewers that if Hillary Clinton wins the Presidential election, Clinton will support the TPP, even though she opposes it now.

Saturday, 09 January 2016 00:00

TPP, Public Comment Period Open!

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Last spring and summer we saw an unprecedented social outrage over the fast-tracking of Trans Pacific Partnership legislation. Activists from all sectors converged and spoke with a loud voice against this dangerous "trade" deal. This is important to Americans on both sides of the political aisle as well as anyone concerned with job security, the environment, social justice, or public health. Now the public has an opportunity to weigh-in before it is voted on. The public comment period for TPP is open until January 13, 2016. If you are not already aware of why this is important to you, then just keep reading.

'The idea that some trade agreement should force us to overheat the planet’s atmosphere is, quite simply, insane.'

Call comes just one day after leaked docs show EU blocking discussion of measures to combat climate change that could 'restrict international trade'

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