by Michael Stumo I was in DC last week focusing mostly on the TPP. Here is the current status. Paul Ryan again said, last week, that the TPP won’t come up for a vote in the lame duck session. McConnell has said this before as well. However, their statements leave wiggle room for something changing.…
[Press Release| September 28, 2016 | Democrat Ways and Means] WASHINGTON, DC – Ways and Means Committee Ranking Member Sander Levin (D-MI) today spoke and participated in a discussion at the Council on Foreign Relations about the need for policymakers to take a fresh look at U.S. trade policy. Rep. Levin’s full prepared remarks can be…
[Dean Baker| September 29, 2016 | Beat the Press] Most workers suffer serious consequences when they mess up on their jobs. Custodians get fired if the toilet is not clean. Dishwashers lose their job when they break too many dishes, but not all workers are held accountable for the quality of their work. At the…
[PETER S. GOODMAN | September 28, 2016 | The New York Times] ROTTERDAM, the Netherlands — For as long as ships have ventured across water, laborers like Patrick Duijzers have tied their fortunes to trade. A longshoreman here at Europe’s largest port, his black Jack Daniels T-shirt, hoop earrings and copious rings give Mr. Duijzers the look…
[ Ian Fletcher| September 27, 2016 | Huffington Post] Here’s a question: guess which public figure wrote the following passages? The language in the second one is a bit technical, but shouldn’t be impossible to understand: “There is still a case for free trade as a good policy, and as a useful target in the…
[ Daily News| September 22, 2016 | Inside US Trade] U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman and Arizona Sen. Jeff Flake this week emphasized that Republican support is needed to get the Trans-Pacific Partnership over the finish line in the lame-duck session of Congress, acknowledging that the current political climate may not allow them to support the deal…
[ Daily News| September 23, 2016 | Inside US Trade] A report issued by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative in conjunction with the 2016 U.S.-Africa Business Forum lays out key facets and likely evolutions of the U.S. trade relationship with African countries after the unilateral preference arrangement laid out in the African Growth and Opportunity Act expires…
[ Daily News| September 22, 2016 | Inside US Trade] Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto has run out of the political capital he needs to push labor reforms through his nation’s legislature, according to former Mexican Foreign Minister Jorge Castaneda, citing reforms that the U.S. Department of Labor called for earlier this year to ensure compliance with…
[ Lisa Rein| September 19, 2016 | The Washington Post] Top Senate Republicans are demanding that Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker explain how the luxurious travel habits of her top trade deputy escaped her notice and whether she has examined the expenses of additional agency employees. The questions from John Thune (R-S.D.), chairman of the Senate Committee…
Below is a letter from the United Steel Workers (USW) to Representative Tim Murphy (PA-18) and Representative Peter Visclosky (IN-01) thanking them for their efforts on fighting for the steel industry and reinforcing the dangers of the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Click here to view the letter. Representative Tim Murphy 2332 Rayburn Bldg.,Washington, D.C. 20515 Representative Peter Visclosky…