Blog: What Others are Saying on Trade Promotion Authority (TPA)

Statement

As the House will likely vote on granting Trade Promotion Authority this week, I am inclined to agree with Sen. Ted Cruz, Sec. Condoleeza Rice, Charles Krauthammer and others on TPA. In fact, 1.2 Million Jobs are dependent on trade in North Carolina.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI):

"Congress can't just take the administration's word that it will drive a hard bargain. We have to hold it accountable, and that is what trade-promotion authority will help do."

Former Secretary of State, Condoleeza Rice:

"Trade-promotion authority is a critical tool in the conduct of U.S. diplomacy. It does not strip Congress of a role in negotiating trade agreements. It explicitly allows Congress to outline principles that must be heeded during negotiations and to exercise its constitutional duties by voting on negotiated agreements. Congress has used that authority to shape the direction of trade agreements over decades -- and without it those agreements would not have been possible. Our negotiating partners will not sign trade agreements with the United States if those agreements will, after the fact, be subject to line-by-line amendment during ratification."

Charles Krauthammer:

"There is no congressional forfeiture of power [in TPA]. Fast track has been the norm for 81 years. And the final say on any trade agreement rests entirely with Congress."-

Stephen Moore, Arthur Laffer, and Larry Kudlow:

"Some believe that TPA takes legislative power away from Congress. But it doesn't. TPA simply facilitates negotiating a trade deal and puts it on a fast track that still requires congressional debate and an up-or-down House and Senate vote for final approval. Republicans have a natural suspicion of what kind of trade agreement Barack Obama will deliver. He's proven himself to be anything but a shrewd negotiator when it comes to foreign affairs -- think Cuba. And others worry that he could abuse his executive authority, as he's done on immigration, the IRS and the health care law. But any bad deal that Obama negotiates can and should be voted down by Congress on final ratification. Republicans have large majorities in both houses of Congress that serve as a backstop to prevent a bad bill. But without TPA the process stalls out altogether."

Bob Etheridge, State Director, USDA Farm Service Agency, Without TPA, Congress is Holding Back Rural Communities, Courier Times:

"The impact of expanded exports reaches even deeper and further into our rural communities. With expanded sales, rural businesses create new American jobs up and down the supply chain. Agricultural exports alone support more than one million jobs here at home, a substantial part of the 11.3 million American jobs supported by exports overall. With more money in their pockets, rural business owners not only hire new workers, they spend more at local businesses, strengthening rural economies and supporting communities where more people want to live and work. To stay ahead of the game in international trade, actively negotiate new agreements that ensure American products can compete on a level playing field, and continue the forward momentum of our rural communities, rural businesses need Trade Promotion Authority."

Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R-TX):

"President Obama has clearly overstepped his constitutional authority on numerous occasions, and his actions on the international stage thus far have only weakened American influence in the world. It is for this very reason that passage of TPA is so important. The executive branch has always maintained the authority to negotiate trade agreements. TPA merely sets in place a process to negotiate potential trade deals, while maintaining the constitutional authority of Congress to finalize any such agreement or treaty. Again, TPA is not a trade agreement; it is a trade-negotiation process, nothing more and nothing less. Rather than reducing congressional input into future trade deals, TPA enhances congressional involvement and oversight during negotiations while requiring additional transparency for the public by mandating that any potential agreement must be publicly available for 60 days before Congress can act. In other words, everyone will have a chance to read it before they "vote' on it."