The Senate approved fast-track authority for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has given up fighting Obama’s trade agenda. Although it’s natural to blame Congressional Democrats who support TPP and fast-track, the blame should mostly be on Obama, reported TruthOut.
Out of Obama’s latest crusades, his trade agenda has been at the top of his list, and it’s been years in the making. The TPP has been negotiated for years behind closed doors with top political supporters and corporate representatives.
Initially, Democrats put up a good fight against TPP and fast-track authority. Over time, Democrats weakened gave their fight against blocking a pro-corporate, anti-worker trade deal.
According to TruthOut, “there is an unwritten rule enforced by the pro-corporate-power wing of the Democratic Party that in order to be the Democratic nominee for president, you have to be a corporate Democrat on trade policy.”
There are currently four candidates seeking the Democratic nomination for the 2016 presidential race: Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders, Martin O’Malley, and Lincoln Chafee. Sanders and O’Malley have been staunchly against Obama’s trade agenda. Therein lies the possible hope to change the current precedent for a Democratic president.
Since at least the Reagan administration, every president, even Bill Clinton, has been a slave to corporate interests. The growing income gap and dwindling taxes paid by corporations show proof of that. The TPP is just the latest example of president serving corporate interests instead of the people’s interests.
Hillary Clinton is no different than the presidents of the last 35 years in terms of dancing to the corporate organ grinder. Whether our next president be Sanders or O’Malley, we don’t need another president who will slave to Wall Street and corporate America.
Here’s the list of 13 Senate Democrats who support Obama’s trade agenda.
• Michael Bennet, Colorado
• Maria Cantwell, Washington
• Tom Carper, Delaware
• Chris Coons, Delaware
• Dianne Feinstein, California
• Heidi Heitkamp, North Dakota
• Tim Kaine, Virginia
• Claire McCaskill, Missouri
• Patty Murray, Washington
• Bill Nelson, Florida
• Jeanne Shaheen, New Hampshire
• Mark Warner, Virginia
• Ron Wyden, Oregon
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