Seattle City Council Resolution Strongly Urges Congress to Reject 'Fast Track' for TPP

Members of a broad progressive coalition -- including activists from CWA, IBEW and other unions, the Sierra Club, 350 Seattle, Seattle Food for Justice and others -- packed a meeting of the Seattle City Council this week as council members unanimously voted to oppose "fast track" or Trade Promotion Authority for trade deals including the Trans-Pacific Partnership.

They applauded as council members, including Council President Tim Burgess who had reservation about the resolution when it was in committee, voted for a resolution:

CWAers were a big part of the crowd as the Seattle City Council voted unanimously to oppose "fast track" and the TPP.

". . . expressing the Seattle City Council's opposition to the current form of Trade Promotion Authority ("Fast Track"), strong concerns about draft elements of the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), and support of fair trade practices and agreements that protect American jobs, protect workers, protect the environment, improve the quality of life in all signatory countries, maintain the integrity and sovereignty of our judicial system, and not give multinational corporations power to undermine national and local governmental authority to create reasonable rules and regulations."

The 9-0 vote on the resolution sends a powerful message that Seattle, a trade-dependent city, wants the United States to practice 21st Century trade policy that is democratic and transparent and not a race to the bottom style agreement like the North American Free Trade Agreement that devastated jobs, the environment and communities across North America.

"The City Council strongly supports trade done right," Burgess said in a statement published in the Seattle Times after the vote. "We're asking our federal government for an updated and transparent process that can lead to an agreement that upholds these values."

Others Have Rejected "Fast Track" for TPP

Other communities, like New York City and Los Angeles, have also rejected "fast track" for the TPP. Just last week, nearby Bellingham, WA, sent a message to Congress to reject "fast track" for TPP. Just as important, the board of directors of the Democratic Municipal Officials (DMO), an organization representing 40,000 Democratic mayors, city council members and other elected municipal office holders in the United States, also approved a resolution on Friday rejecting "fast track."

"DMO is deeply concerned about the potential adverse effects on American workers and working families from poorly designed or inadequately enforced trade agreements," says their resolution.

Meanwhile, over Congress' April recess, CWAers, activists and political allies are holding more rallies, town halls, meetings and office visits to convince wavering members of Congress to listen to their constituents and vote no on "fast track."