[CTC] Obama takes to op-ed pages to push Trans-Pacific Partnership

[Arthur Stamoulis]

http://www.cnn.com/2015/10/17/politics/barack-obama-tpp-op-ed/index.html

Obama takes to op-ed pages to push Trans-Pacific Partnership

CNN

By Daniella Diaz

October 17, 2015

Washington (CNN)President Barack Obama is taking to the op-ed pages of
several local newspapers to make his case for passage of the Trans-Pacific
Partnership trade agreement.

On Saturday, the Concord Monitor of New Hampshirepublished an op-ed under
Obama's byline advocating for the deal and why it stands to benefit New
Hampshire. The day before, the Tampa Bay Times published virtually the same
op-ed by Obama, except it was tweaked to appeal to Floridians' concerns,
mentioning "Florida orange juice" and citing the number of jobs supported
by goods exported by Florida.

"This agreement reflects the realities of a 21st-century economy, where
global trade plays an increasingly central role," Obama wrote in the
Concord Monitor. "In fact, trade is a substantial driver of New Hampshire's
economy. Over 20,000 American jobs are currently supported by goods exports
from New Hampshire, with 32 percent of Made in New Hampshire goods exports
shipped to TPP partners."

Obama writes that every state could benefit from the trade agreement,
adding that "in the coming weeks and months" Congress and the American
people will be able to read the deal. He vows that the trade deal will
eliminate over 18,000 taxes on products made by American manufacturers
while enforcing tough labor standards abroad.

It also reflects America's values. I'm the first person who will say that
past trade agreements haven't lived up to their promise. But our future
depends on doing trade right," he writes in the op-eds.

The President has been pushing the TPP since the start of his presidency.
The White House said Saturday that more op-eds are planned to be written
for other regional newspapers over the next few days, though a spokesman
declined to provide further details.

The TPP would knock down tariffs and import quotas, making it cheaper to
import and export, and open new Asia-Pacific markets to American companies.
Negotiations have been going on for years, and were reached earlier this
month between the U.S. and 11 other nations. Next, the deal must be
approved by Congress and the 11 other countries' legislatures before it can
take effect.

Obama's op-eds come one week after Democratic presidential front-runner
Hillary Clinton voiced her opposition to the deal, aligning herself with
progressives who have deep misgivings over its potential impact on American
jobs and wages.

CNN's Allie Malloy, Eric Bradner, Chris Isidore and Dan Merica contributed
to this report.

Arthur Stamoulis
Citizens Trade Campaign
(202) 494-8826
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.citizenstrade.org/pipermail/ctcfield-citizenstrade.org/attachments/20151020/2f7d6a69/attachment.htm>