CPA praised the US Senate’s overwhelmingly positive vote today to curb currency manipulation by foreign countries through the imposition of countervailing duties. A veto-proof majority of Senators approved the bill, entitled the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015 (S 1269), by a vote of 78-20. “Our domestic producer members have worked…
In a capitulation to foreign governments, the USDA is signaling its readiness to eliminate country of origin food labeling law in the face of a WTO challenge by Canada and Mexico. Foreign countries want their imported meat, seafood and produce to be disguised and not labeled as from those other countries. To justify…
[by Michael Stumo] The Senate voted to proceed to debate the trade deficit producing Fast Track bill today. All Republicans and 13 Democrats voted for cloture. The Dems voting for the motion to proceed were Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Sens. Michael Bennet (D-CO), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Tom Carper (D-DE),…
McConnell refuses to budge on demands for additional worker protections, ahead of cliffhanger vote. [Reposted from Politico | Burgess Everett and Manu Raju | May 12, 2015] After President Barack Obama’s own party slammed the brakes on the centerpiece of his trade agenda — also a top priority for the GOP — there were early…
Spurred on by powerful multinational corporations and aided by their corporate lobbyists, the administration wants Congress to sign a blank check for yet another “free trade” deal, with the same inadequate safeguards as previous failed deals. The administration is pressuring Congress to pass special legislation, known as “fast track,” intended to prevent a full…
Howard Richman is a CPA member and supporter. Tomorrow, the Senate will start voting on whether or not to give President Obama Fast-Track power (Trade Promotion Authority). As my father, son and I noted in a commentary last week (Fast Tracking America’s Economic Destruction), the Trans Pacific Partnership will give our treaty partners permission to…
It seemed like a typical day for President Obama. He taped a TV interview on trade, hosted the champion NASCAR team on the South Lawn and met with the defense secretary in the Oval Office. [Reposted from The Washington Post | Steven Mufson | May 11, 2015] Not so typical was something that didn’t appear…
CPA issued the following organizational statement today: Reports indicate that Senate leadership has today reached an agreement to proceed to debate bills regarding Fast Track trade authority, fixing foreign currency manipulation legislation and effective customs enforcement. The Coalition for a Prosperous America is determined to ensure that both Houses of Congress fully debate…
The early morning headline on Wednesday morning, May 13, 2015 read “Senate deals stinging defeat to Obama trade agenda“. The initial perception is that Democrats broke rank with their own President and vociferously fought him on a measure that would ultimately lead to the passage of the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) and the…
In the first quarter of 2015, in the sixth year of the historic Obama recovery, the U.S. economy grew by two-tenths of 1 percent. [Reposted from Creators.com | Pat Buchanan | May 12, 2015] And that probably sugarcoats it. For trade deficits subtract from the growth of GDP, and the U.S. trade deficit that just…