TransPacific Partnership Will Undermine Democracy, Empower Transnational Corporations
By Margaret Flowers and Kevin Zeese March 31st, 2013
thepeoplesvoice.org
Our country's democratic values could be under threat if President Obama fast tracks the Trans-Pacific Partnership.
On critical issues, the massive Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) being negotiated in secret by the Obama administration will undermine democracy in the United States and around the world and further empower transnational corporations. It will circumvent protections for health care, wages, labor rights, consumers' rights and the environment, and decrease regulation of big finance and risky investment practices.
The only way this treaty, which will be very unpopular with the American people once they are aware of it, can be approved is if the Obama administration avoids the democratic process by using an authority known as "Fast Track," which limits the constitutional checks and balances of Congress. If the TPP is approved, the sovereignty of the United States and other member nations will be dissipated by trade tribunals that favor corporate power and force national laws to be subservient to corporate interests.
Circumventing the Checks and Balances of US Democracy
President Nixon first developed the idea of "Fast Track" in 1973 as a way to secure Congressional approval of trade agreements, and it has been a key to passing many unpopular agreements such as the World Trade Organization (WTO) and NAFTA. As people have caught on to the offshoring of jobs and other detrimental consequences of these agreements, civil society now understands how important it is to not allow a president to circumvent the democratic role of Congress. Fast Track expired in 2007, so President Obama must have it re-instated in order to pass the TPP. His administration is moving to have Fast Track approved and hopes it will happen by this summer....MORE
http://www.thepeoplesvoice.org/TPV3/Voices.php/2013/03/31/transpacific-partnership-will-undermine-
from Richard Stallman:
http://www.stallman.org/archives/2013-jan-apr.html
"If this were going to benefit poor and working people in other countries, it might be ethically a step forward. However, "free trade" generally helps the rich and hurts the rest, by undermining democracy.
Another screw in the TPP: no more "buy American" requirements in government contracts...."
Bye Buy America and Jobs
Under TPP, Buy America and other buy-local preferences are banned
The TPP’s procurement chapter would require that all firms operating in any signatory country be provided equal access as domestic firms to U.S. government procurement contracts over a certain dollar threshold. To implement this “national treatment” requirement, the U.S. would agree to waive Buy America procurement policies for all of the firms operating in the TPP countries...
Some corporate TPP proponents argue that this is good for America because these rules would apply to all signatory countries, so U.S. firms would be able to bid on procurements contracts in other countries on a national treatment basis. The notion that new access for some U.S. companies to bid on contracts in the TPP countries is a good trade-off for waiving Buy America preferences on U.S. procurement is ridiculous: Taking even the most favorable cut on other countries’ markets, the total U.S. procurement market is more than seven times the size of the combined procurement market of the current TPP negotiating parties: Australia, Brunei, Chile, Malaysia, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, and Vietnam.
http://www.citizen.org/Page.aspx?pid=5414
= new reply since forum marked as read
wait
In September 2016, Democrats will again bring up "Fixing NAFTA"
Same song, different deal.
indeed
