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Obama’s Last Ditch Effort To Pass TPP Stalls Indefinitely

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Ted Goodman Contributor
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President Barack Obama’s signature trade deal is in danger of stalling not only through the election, but also through the first term of the next president.

Both Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton and Republican nominee Donald Trump have voiced their opposition to the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), and both the Republican and Democratic National Conventions were teeming with anti-TPP delegates. The GOP opposed a vote on TPP as a part of their official party platform while delegates at the DNC in Philadelphia held up signs which featured TPP with a blight red slash through it (similar to an anti-smoking sign).

The Trans-Pacific Partnership is an unprecedented regional trade agreement between the United States and 11 other countries in the Pacific Rim.

The Obama administration will begin a final push for the agreement in September, with Obama making a trip to Asia in order to promote the agreement, according to the New York Times. Secretary of State John Kerry, Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter, Retired Admiral Michael Mullen and numerous other former military officials will be a part of a final push with a focus on the national security benefits of approving the deal.

Clinton once called TPP, “the gold standard in trade agreements,” but recently recanted her support, likely because of Sen. Bernie Sanders and his appeal among blue collar voters in states like Michigan. The socialist repeatedly accosted Clinton for her support from Wall Street and for supporting previous trade agreements such as NAFTA and CAFTA.

Trump called the TPP trade deal, “another disaster pushed by special interests who want to rape our country.”

Sixty senators supported a fast-track bill last year, but in light of the populist strain running through the American electorate, a number of those Senators have changed their position and now oppose the deal. Sen. Patrick Toomey, who is a Republican running for re-election, now opposes the deal, as does Sen. Tim Kaine who switched his position after joining Clinton as her running mate.

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