Even as President Barack Obama was calling on Congress to grant him expanded powers to negotiate trade agreements, some of his staunchest allies were raising objections. [Reposted from Bloomberg | Carter Dougherty | January 20, 2015] “I’m the first one to admit that past trade deals haven’t always lived up to the hype,” Obama said…
The president’s push for trade deals is ‘No. 1, No. 2, No. 3 and No. 4’ on the list of what House Democrats disliked about the State of the Union, Rep. Peter DeFazio said. [Reposted from Politico | Lauren French | January 20, 2015] House Democrats have long been wary of the trade proposals the…
It’s widely expected that in tonight’s State of the Union address President Obama will call for actions to boost wages for low- and moderate-wage Americans, and also for moving forward on two trade agreements—the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and the Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). [Reposted from the EPI blog | Josh Bivens | January…
WASHINGTON — IF the new Congress can agree on anything this year, it may well be the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a trade deal between the United States and 11 other countries throughout the Asia-Pacific region. Passions run high when it comes to trade deals these days, and the Obama administration is working hard to sell it…
Most economists are predicting a rosy forecast of more than 3 percent expansion for the U.S. economy in 2015, up from 2.3% in 2014. If it does, this “would mark the first time in a decade that growth has reached that level for a full calendar year.” The unemployment rate is also predicted to drop…
House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) on Wednesday praised President Obama for his remarks on trade in the State of the Union address. [Reposted from The Hill | David McCabe | January 21, 2015] “I agree with every word in his speech in respect to trade and Asia, and getting in there…
National Farmers Union(Jan. 22, 2015) Contact: Andrew Jerome, 202-314-3106 [email protected] – See more at: https://www.nfu.org/news/302-international-policy/2635-new-study-economic-downturn-and-other-factors-not-cool-caused-decline-in-live-cattle-imports-to-the-us-canadian-claims-of-economic-damage-without-merit#sthash.PqDxKKtf.dpuf Contact: Andrew Jerome, 202-314-3106, [email protected] WASHINGTON (Jan. 22, 2015) – Contrary to arguments made by America’s trade competitors to the World Trade Organization (WTO), an economic downturn that sapped consumer demand — not Country-of-Origin Labeling (COOL) — caused decreased demand for…
As my good friend James Carville is apt to remind, “It’s the economy, stupid!” Leaders of the new Republican majority should heed that advice at every turn as they craft their agenda for the next session of Congress. [Reposted from Forbes Opinion online | Art Laffer | January 20, 2015] A prosperous economy is…
Overproduction in the Chinese government owned steel industry is causing a global oversupply and driving out otherwise competitive US producers. Obama administration and GOP leadership refuse to do anything about it, but rather fast forward on the same field trip trade policy. [Reposted from Zacks | January 22, 2015] The new year does not…
Representative Sandy Levin (D-MI-09) has proposed the following negotiating priorities for the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Levin is Ranking Member on the House Ways and Means Committee. He has taken the position that Fast Track trade authority is unnecessary and unwarranted because the US Trade Representative’s office has largely negotiated it already. Instead, Rep. Levin says, Congress…