Don't Let TPP Become the Next NAFTA

Opposition to the Trans-Pacific Partnership is growing. More and more people are speaking out against this massive, secret trade deal that’s shaping up to be “NAFTA on steroids.”

• The Washington Post wrote a recent article titled, “As White House Pushes Trade Deal Abroad, Opposition Grows at Home,” that highlights that, “the Obama administration is facing a difficult sales job at home as key industries and unions grow cautious, domestic manufacturers move to protect their markets, and trade skeptics amp up their opposition.
• CWA President Larry Cohen blogs in the Huffington Post, “TPP is bad for working families, because, like nearly every other trade agreement that's been negotiated by the U.S. in the past 20 years, TPP isn't concerned with U.S. workers or jobs. Every other nation starts out with jobs and the economy as their priorities. The U.S. unfortunately has a different focus, and looks at trade in terms of national security and global corporate interests, not ensuring the economic well-being of working families.”
• BusinessWeek writes that, “A growing chorus of lawmakers is calling for trade negotiators to address issues including currency manipulation, food-safety standards and competition with state-backed industries as the administration seeks “fast-track” authority to smooth eventual passage of the Trans-Pacific Partnership.”
• Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), in an op-ed published by the Youngstown Vindicator, writes, “The Trans-Pacific Partnership deal — as it stands now — could threaten the remarkable recovery of the U.S. auto industry.”
• Teamsters General President James P. Hoffa and Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune wrote in The Hill, “Countries that have fought hard for their protections – environmental, labor or otherwise – should not feel threatened by big corporations. Unfortunately, we expect the TPP will include provisions that allow foreign corporations to sue governments over just these types of laws and policies – if the corporation feels the law undercuts its bottom line. Such investor protections are not only a fundamental threat to our democracy, but also to workers and the environment.”