US President Barack Obama’s trade agenda narrowly passed an initial test in the US Senate late on Wednesday, but many fellow Democrats hope to stop it in the US House of Representatives.
The US Senate Finance Committee endorsed Obama’s request for “fast track” legislation, which would renew presidential authority to present trade deals that US Congress can endorse or reject but not amend. If the House and Senate eventually comply, Obama is likely to ask them to approve the 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), which involves Japan, Canada and Mexico, but not China. Other trade proposals could follow.
Progressives, unions and other groups oppose the trade measures, saying they would hurt US jobs.
Opponents lost a round on Wednesday, when the committee defeated a “currency manipulation” measure that Obama aides said would unravel the TPP deal.
Votes for and against the provision were about evenly divided between Republicans and Democrats, highlighting the unusual political alignments on trade.
The finance committee later voted 20-6 to pass the fast-track bill. The only committee Republican voting against was Senator Richard Burr of North Carolina.
Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, of the Republican Party, said fast-track approval promises “high standard” trade deals in the future.
The House was due to enter the debate yesterday, when the Ways and Means Committee was to take up similar legislation.
The panel’s top Democrat, US Representative Sander Levin of Michigan, opposes the Obama-backed version. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi endorsed Levin’s alternative bill, even as Republicans said that the White House must bring a few dozen House Democrats on board.
By contrast, Senator Ron Wyden, the Senate Finance Committee’s top Democrat, backs the fast-track bill.
Obama says his Democratic opponents have their facts wrong. He said Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts is among those “wrong” on the issue.
Warren responded with a blog entry saying that “the government doesn’t want you to read this massive new trade agreement. It’s top secret.”
Obama and his trade allies reject such claims. They have said fast-track and other proposals have been carefully negotiated and would undergo public scrutiny for months before final votes take place.
Their biggest scare on Wednesday came when Republican Senator Rob Portman urged the finance committee to direct US trade officials to take tougher stands against nations that allegedly keep their currency artificially low. The practice can boost exports by making local products more affordable to foreign buyers. Economists disagree on whether China and other nations engage in the practice.
Obama administration officials said attempts to crack down on currency manipulation can backfire and ignite trade wars.
They said Portman’s proposal “could derail” the TPP negotiations. The committee rejected Portman’s amendment, 15-11.
Committee members added a broader currency manipulation amendment, by Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, to a customs bill. However, Schumer did not offer it on the fast-track bill, where it would have been more problematic for Obama.
The finance committee’s actions on Wednesday were delayed for hours because progressive Senator Bernie Sanders invoked an often-ignored Senate scheduling rule in protest.
“This job-killing trade deal has been negotiated in secret,” said Sanders, who made a lengthy Senate speech denouncing the legislation.
The trade debate was scheduled to be heard in the House of Representatives yesterday.
Representative Tom Cole estimates that about 180 to 200 House Republicans are set to vote for fast track, with 15 to 30 Democrats.
“This is the president’s initiative,” Cole said. “He’s going to have to work his side of the aisle pretty hard.”
The low end of Cole’s estimate would leave Obama short of a majority in the 435-seat House.
The military is to begin conscripting civilians next year, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet said yesterday, citing rising tensions with Thailand as the reason for activating a long-dormant mandatory enlistment law. The Cambodian parliament in 2006 approved a law that would require all Cambodians aged 18 to 30 to serve in the military for 18 months, although it has never been enforced. Relations with Thailand have been tense since May, when a long-standing territorial dispute boiled over into cross-border clashes, killing one Cambodian soldier. “This episode of confrontation is a lesson for us and is an opportunity for us to review, assess and
The Russian minister of foreign affairs warned the US, South Korea and Japan against forming a security partnership targeting North Korea as he visited the ally country for talks on further solidifying their booming military and other cooperation. Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergei Lavrov spoke on Saturday in Wonsan City, North Korea, where he met North Korean Leader Kim Jong-un and conveyed greetings from Russian President Vladimir Putin. Kim during the meeting reaffirmed his government’s commitment to “unconditionally support and encourage all measures” taken by Russia in its conflict with Ukraine. Pyongyang and Moscow share identical views on “all strategic issues in
IDENTITY: A sex extortion scandal involving Thai monks has deeply shaken public trust in the clergy, with 11 monks implicated in financial misconduct Reverence for the saffron-robed Buddhist monkhood is deeply woven into Thai society, but a sex extortion scandal has besmirched the clergy and left the devout questioning their faith. Thai police this week arrested a woman accused of bedding at least 11 monks in breach of their vows of celibacy, before blackmailing them with thousands of secretly taken photos of their trysts. The monks are said to have paid nearly US$12 million, funneled out of their monasteries, funded by donations from laypeople hoping to increase their merit and prospects for reincarnation. The scandal provoked outrage over hypocrisy in the monkhood, concern that their status
The United States Federal Communications Commission said on Wednesday it plans to adopt rules to bar companies from connecting undersea submarine communication cables to the US that include Chinese technology or equipment. “We have seen submarine cable infrastructure threatened in recent years by foreign adversaries, like China,” FCC Chair Brendan Carr said in a statement. “We are therefore taking action here to guard our submarine cables against foreign adversary ownership, and access as well as cyber and physical threats.” The United States has for years expressed concerns about China’s role in handling network traffic and the potential for espionage. The U.S. has
RSS