Read this Paul Krugman column in the New York Times from this past weekend. He exposes how the defenses of the TPP offered by its supporters don't answer the charges made against it by its opponents:
The administration’s main analytical defense of the trade deal came earlier this month, in a report from the Council of Economic Advisers. Strangely, however, the report didn’t actually analyze the Pacific trade pact. Instead, it was a paean to the virtues of free trade, which was irrelevant to the question at hand. . . .
Instead of addressing real concerns . . . the Obama administration has been dismissive, trying to portray skeptics as uninformed hacks who don’t understand the virtues of trade. But they’re not: the skeptics have on balance been more right than wrong about issues like dispute settlement . . . .
Why are Obama and many Democrats supporting TPP/TAFTA, “trade”(investor) agreements written in secret by corporate reps? The simple answer to much government policy today is: follow the money. These are the same corporate beneficiaries who influence policy decisions via large campaign contributions, continuous lobbying, and revolving door private/public employment. When banks give million dollar incentives to high-ranking staff to accept positions in the Treasury Dept. or as economic advisers, it’s not because they appreciate public service.
It seems to me that water for drinking will become a luxury only for the the upper class. What are people going to do when they only have their saliva in the mouths to live on just take it?
As usual, Krugman’s points are clear and convincing. What we need now, I think, to stick a fork in this puzzling snow job is a smoking quid pro quo. Why is the White House doing this? What’s in it for the Obama administration? There must be SOMETHING there, for them to be slapping an albatross on every Democrat running for office in the next decade.
Why would an honest administration want us to buy a pig in a poke?
This is sad for us Obama supporters. But he went off the tracks on this, no pun intended.