<div dir="ltr">Fair Trade Advocates,<br><div class="gmail_quote"><div dir="ltr"><div><div class="gmail_quote"><b><br></b><div dir="ltr"><div style="margin-left:40px"><div><b>I wanted to make sure you saw these surprising comments Sen Cantwell made during the confirmation hearing of Lighthizer for USTR last week.<br><br></b>She criticized the TPP and similar deals (TTIP, TiSA) as serving to enrich corporate multinational issues while hurting the environment and working families, and asked Lighthizer whether he would, if selected, would cease negotiations on these deals.<br><br></div>This is the first statement she has made to this effect. <br></div><div style="margin-left:80px"><br></div><div style="margin-left:40px">Please help us spread the word -- Share on twitter and facebook!<br></div><div style="margin-left:40px"> <br></div><div style="margin-left:80px">Sample Tweet #1: “@SenatorCantwell Thank you for acknowledging that the TPP, TiSA, TTIP
and China BIT put corporations ahead of WA families #FairTradeFirst"<br><br></div><div style="margin-left:80px">Sample Tweet #2: Wow! @SenatorCantwell asked USTR pick Lighthizer if he would stop
corporate deals like TTIP & TiSA if confirmed. Thank you!
#FairTradeFirst</div><div><br></div><div>Our press release, with quotes from the confirmation hearing, is included below.<br><br></div><div>thank you!<br></div><div><br></div>Best,<br clear="all"><div><div><div><div><div class="gmail-m_-8040392185396685012gmail-m_-2560065864402587760gmail_signature"><div dir="ltr"><div><div><div>Gillian Locascio<br></div><span style="color:rgb(102,102,102)">Washington Fair Trade Coalition | <a href="tel:%28206%29%20227-3079" value="+12062273079" target="_blank">206.227.3079</a><br></span></div><span style="color:rgb(102,102,102)"><a href="http://www.washingtonfairtrade.org" target="_blank">www.washingtonfairtrade.org</a> | @WaFairTrade</span><br><br><br></div><div>Press release link: <a href="http://washingtonfairtrade.org/?p=5559" target="_blank">http://washingtonfairtrade.<wbr>org/?p=5559</a><br><br></div><div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:13pt">Senator Cantwell Challenges Trump Nominee to
Rethink Our Approach to Trade</span></b><span style="font-size:13pt;font-family:helvetica"></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:13pt;font-family:helvetica"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span>Seattle, Wash. — The Washington Fair Trade
Coalition (WFTC) today praised Senator Maria Cantwell for challenging Donald
Trump’s nominee for U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) to promote a more just and
sustainable global economy. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span>“Voters in Washington and beyond are demanding
trade policies that respect workers, families, and healthy communities” said
WFTC Director Gillian Locascio. “We appreciate Senator Cantwell’s leadership
in hearings on Donald Trump’s trade nominee on this issue.”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span>Senator Cantwell asked of USTR nominee Robert
Lighthizer:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:0.5in"><span> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 6pt 0.5in"><span><span>•<span style="font:7pt "times new roman""> </span></span></span><span>There are several trade negotiations underway that follow the same flawed
model of the now defunct TPP. These include the Trade in Services Agreement, or
TISA, the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, or TTIP, and the US
China Bilateral Investment Treaty. Each of these agreements would serve to
enrich multinational corporations at the expense of working people and the
environment. If confirmed as USTR, would you commit to cease negotiations
on each of these three corporate trade agreements?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 6pt 0.5in"><span><span>•<span style="font:7pt "times new roman""> </span></span></span><span>Not only is our trade negotiation process dominated by corporations, but
proposals for trade deals and negotiated texts are kept hidden from the public.
The proposals and negotiated texts for the TPP, for example, were kept secret
for over seven years of negotiations. This forced labor unions, public health
groups, environmental organizations, and the public to rely on leaked texts in order
to have an idea of the trade rules under negotiation. Would you support
having all proposals and negotiated texts published online in a timely fashion
so the workers and the broader public that will be impacted by these agreements
have a full understanding of what is being negotiated? </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 6pt 0.5in"><span><span>•<span style="font:7pt "times new roman""> </span></span></span><span>NAFTA’s investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) system has empowered
multinational corporations like ExxonMobil to bypass domestic courts, turn to
private tribunals, and demand taxpayer compensation for policies that affect
the value of their investment. The policies that they have challenged include
bans on toxic chemicals, court rulings that support access to affordable
medicines, and protections for our climate. Corporations have used NAFTA’s
investment rules to extract more than $370 million from governments in such
cases. Pending NAFTA claims total more than $35 billion. If confirmed as
USTR, would you eliminate broad investment rules and the investor-state dispute
settlement system from NAFTA? Yes or No. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin:0in 0in 6pt 0.5in"><span><span>•<span style="font:7pt "times new roman""> </span></span></span><span>NAFTA's weak and unenforceable environmental and labor side agreements
facilitated the offshoring of jobs so that corporations could exploit lower
environmental and labor standards in another country. If confirmed as USTR,
would you renegotiate NAFTA to require each participating country to adopt,
maintain, and implement policies to fulfill important international
environmental and labor agreements, including the Paris climate agreement and
core ILO conventions? Yes or No.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span>
</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span>“Mr. Lighthizer was disappointingly vague in his
responses to these and other questions,” said Locascio. “It is long past time
for new trade policies that benefit, rather than harm, the economy, environment
and public health.” </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span>WFTC is a coalition of labor, environmental,
family farm and human rights organizations working together to improve
international trade policy.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span> </span></p>
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