Voting Down

The Trans Pacific Partnership is expanding.
The Trans Pacific Partnership is expanding.

 

On May 12, the U.S. Senate took a vote on the bill giving the Barack Obama administration the trade promotion authority (TPA) for a prompt conclusion of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). The bill was voted down 52 to 45.

According to the New York Times, the rejection was led by the Democratic Party. Senator Elizabeth Warren is also opposed to the TPP, claiming that it will affect the employment of American workers based on the relocation of U.S. companies to other countries, and an increase in the import of foreign goods. Meanwhile, the Republican Party is in favor of the TPP, saying that free trade will lead to a positive effect on the interests of the United States.

The rejection was influenced by the controversy surrounding foreign exchange rate manipulation by some of the TPP members-to-be, too. The New York Times reported that some Republicans as well as Democrats are disgruntled about the artificial currency depreciation attempts of Japan, Malaysia, and other Asian countries. The Democratic Party is insisting that import duties be imposed on those countries before the passage of the TPA bill. However, most of the countries at the negotiating table, including Japan, are planning to withdraw from the TPP itself once trade-related acts are revised that way.

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