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The Senate inflicted a harsh setback to President Barack Obama on Tuesday, rejecting a measure that would have granted the president powers to fast-track the 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade.
The Obama backed proposal fell short of the 60 votes required, with Democrats unanimously rejecting the move, which received only 52 votes with 45 against.
The Democrats were especially sensitive to the argument claiming that the TPP will not improve the U.S. unemployment situation, but is more likely to worsen it by facilitating the relocation of U.S. companies to Asia, where the workforce is cheaper.
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Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders commented, “the administration says trust us. Forget about those other trade agreements. The TPP is special. This time it will be different. This one really will create jobs, despite the fact that every major organization representing the working people of this country says the exact opposite. The TPP would force American workers to compete against desperate workers in Vietnam who make 56 cents an hour. We have got to do better than that.”
The TPP if passed would become the largest free trade deal ever signed as it would consist of a potential 40 percent of the world’s total economic output.
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