Next Steps on Fast Track and TPP Fight

As expected, on Wednesday, the Senate approved Fast Track trade authority by a 60-38 vote. Separately, the House passed a bill extending Trade Adjustment Assistance for workers who lose their jobs because of trade; those bills were expected to get to the President's desk before Congress left town for its July 4 recess.

CWAers and allies kept the heat on senators this week, especially for the cloture vote to end debate and move Fast Track to a final vote. Activists also thanked those Senators and House members who continue to stand with working families. (See story #3 for more.)

On the cloture vote, 13 Democratic senators joined most Republicans in showing that they're on the side of the 1 percent, not working families.

These Senators caved to corporate interests that want access to poverty wages in Vietnam and the ability to challenge any U.S. laws they believe will get in the way of "future expected profits." No surprise, a deal that corporations want so badly is fast tracked, because they spent millions of dollars to make it happen. But issues that affect ordinary Americans, like investment in our country's roads and transportation, an increase in the minimum wage or some real attention to climate change, just get shoved aside. Read CWA's statement here.

The 13 Democrats are Michael Bennet (Colo.), Maria Cantwell (Wash.), Thomas Carper (Del.), Chris Coons (Del.), Dianne Feinstein (Calif.), Heidi Heitkamp (N.D.), Tim Kaine (Va.), Claire McCaskill (Mo.), Patty Murray (Wash.), Bill Nelson (Fla.), Jeanne Shaheen (N.H.), Mark Warner (Va.), and Ron Wyden (Ore.)

CWA President Chris Shelton said CWA and our allies will be holding Senators and House members accountable for this vote. "We'll stand with those members of Congress who supported our communities, and for those who opposed the broadest coalition of Americans ever, we will find and support candidates who will stand with working families. That's how we'll take on the corporate Democrats who oppose a working family agenda."

Now, as the TPP moves forward, we will continue to shine a light on the serious problems in this trade deal, from lost jobs in the U.S. to expanded corporate rights under the Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) process to concerns about food safety and prescription drugs.

We'll continue to remind the Obama administration about the big promises it made, and that we're holding them accountable, too.

Former CWA President Larry Cohen continues to help lead the fair trade coalition. "We will hold our government and the U.S. Trade Representative responsible for real enforcement of the human rights provisions of these agreements both in the U.S. and with our so-called partners. Last week Honduran trade union leader Hector Motino was murdered as he drove home from work. I had met Hector in Honduras and heard about the death threats he faced and the 200 human rights activists who were murdered in Honduras since the labor movement filed a complaint under the Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA). We will demand real change, not just text that cannot be enforced."