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Tuesday, March 19, 2024
March 19, 2024

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In Our View: Posturing Over Trade

U.S. Senate fight over Obama's authority could reverberate in Washington state

The Columbian
Published:

Although it ultimately amounted to little more than political posturing, last week’s congressional wrangling over Trade Promotion Authority for President Barack Obama provided an interesting lesson in the ways of politics.

On Tuesday, Washington Sens. Maria Cantwell and Patty Murray joined their fellow Democrats in blocking a vote on Trade Promotion Authority. Such authority would allow the administration to finalize trade agreements and send them to Congress for a simple up or down vote — with no amendments being tacked on. This is related to the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership, a deal that would create tariff-free trade avenues between the United States and 12 other Pacific Rim countries, not including China. The deal has been in the works for the better part of a decade, and it reportedly includes provisions dealing with environmental regulations and workers’ rights and intellectual property protections.

We say “reportedly” because many of the details remain unknown except to those who have been at the negotiating table. That is part of what led to Senate Democrats momentarily rebuking the president in his request for Trade Promotion Authority. As if the situation were not confusing enough, the vote led to the awkwardness of congressional Republicans and big business siding with Obama while Democrats and many labor organizations opposed him. Something about strange bedfellows and all that.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., who is leading the populist battle against the trade agreement, said: “We can’t keep pushing through trade deals that benefit multinational companies at the expense of workers. Government cannot continue to be the captive of the rich and powerful. Working people cannot be forced to give up more and more as they get squeezed harder and harder.” On the other hand, we cannot expect a 20th century model for international trade to remain effective in the 21st century. Warren’s assertions point out the importance of Congress fully vetting the trade agreement, but first it must have an agreement to vet; the deal must be finalized before Congress can give an up or down vote.

Which brings us to Thursday. That’s when Senate Democrats relented and allowed a vote on Trade Promotion Authority, granting it to Obama as it has to every other president over the past several decades. Democrats received scant concessions before allowing the vote to proceed, with the Senate passing a customs bill that includes language cracking down on currency manipulation by trading partners. That bill is extremely unlikely to be taken up by the House of Representatives; it is even less likely to be signed by Obama if it lands on his desk. All of which demonstrates that the intransigence of earlier in the week was little more than posturing.

While all of this amounts to so much political minutiae, it is particularly relevant for the state of Washington. As the most trade-dependent state in the country, an agreement involving nations that account for 40 percent of the world’s gross domestic product will have vast implications. Greasing the wheels for international trade will be helpful to businesses in this state, but legitimate questions remain about whether it will be helpful to workers. Legitimate questions remain about whether American companies can compete with low wages in other countries and whether jobs will be outsourced.

Eventually, answers will need to be provided before Congress says yea or nay to the Trans-Pacific Partnership. But for now, the political wrangling has provided plenty of intrigue.

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