SERVING ORGANIZED LABOR IN OREGON AND SOUTHWEST WASHINGTON SINCE 1900
NORTHWEST
INSIDE
LABOR
PRESS
Wyden trying to pull a fast one on fast track
KGW protest
2
Labor candidates 3
Union meetings 6
Free classifieds 10
VOLUME 116, NUMBER 9
PORTLAND, OREGON
By Don McIntosh
Associate Editor
U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore-
gon) announced agreement with
Republican leaders April 16
over the terms of a “fast track”
bill introduced in the Senate and
House. The bill would make it
easier to pass the Trans-Pacific
Partnership (TPP), a NAFTA-
style trade deal that the Obama
Administration has been negoti-
ating in secret with representa-
tives from 11 other Pacific Rim
nations.
In a press statement, Wyden
said the bill creates “unprece-
dented transparency in trade ne-
gotiations, and ensures future
trade deals break new ground to
promote human rights, improve
labor conditions, and safeguard
the environment.”
But a line-by-line analysis
shows Wyden’s statement to be
false. Wyden’s bill is almost
identical to a fast track bill from
the year before. The only differ-
ences are that the Wyden bill:
• Adds the word “account-
M AY 19 E LECTION
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ability” to the name of the act;
• Establishes the position of
“chief transparency officer” to
advise about “transparency;”
• Gives Congressional staff
“with the proper security clear-
ances,” the right to see (but not
take pictures of) negotiating
texts;
• Requires the president to
publish the agreement online 60
days before formally signing it;
and
• Creates a narrow escape
hatch to revoke fast track con-
sideration: Agreements won’t be
subject to the fast track rules if
the House or Senate vote to de-
clare that the president has failed
to notify or consult Congress on
trade negotiations—but they can
only do that if the House Ways
and Means Committee, or the
Senate Finance Committee first
do so.
In other respects, the Wyden
bill is the same as previous fast
track bills—Congress has to fin-
ish voting on a trade agreement
MAY 1, 2015
90 days after the president sends
it to them, and can’t amend it in
any way. The U.S. Constitution
gives Congress the power to
“regulate commerce with for-
eign nations.” Through fast
track, Congress abdicates that
power, giving it to the president.
In theory, the fast track bills in-
struct the president what to bar-
gain for with other nations. In
fact, Obama has been negotiat-
ing the TPP since he took office
in 2009, so any fast track provi-
sions telling the president what
to bargain for can’t be taken se-
riously, since they’re coming af-
ter the fact.
With fast track, what’s really
at stake is an agreement, the
TPP, written substantially by
and for U.S. corporations, which
would obligate Pacific Rim
countries to expand patent,
trademark and copyright mo-
nopolies, and give foreign in-
vestors the right to sue govern-
ments for passing laws that
reduce profits. That’s a conclu-
sion based on texts leaked to
Wikileaks. Under the fast track
bill, the final text of the secret
agreement won’t be known until
the deal is signed and sent to
Congress for its rubber stamp.
On April 22, six days after
Wyden’s bill was announced, the
Senate version, S. 995, passed
the Senate Finance Committee
20-6. It was supported by
Wyden, Maria Cantwell of
Washington, and five other De-
mocrats, and all but one Repub-
lican. Senators Debbie Stabenow
(D-Mich.) and Rob Portman (R-
Ohio) tried to amend the bill to
require the White House to in-
clude enforceable currency ma-
nipulation provisions in interna-
tional trade agreements, but that
failed 11-15, with Cantwell and
four other Democrats joining 10
Republicans in voting against it.
The following day, the House
version, H.R. 1890 passed the
Ways and Means Committee
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Authorized and paid for by the Northwest Oregon Labor Council,
9955 SE Washington, St., Suite 305, Portland, OR 97216
SAYING NO TO FAST TRACK. Protesters received a police escort through the streets of downtown Portland
April 18 for a “No Fast Track” rally and march sponsored by the Oregon AFL-CIO. Approximately 500 people
participated. Oregon U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden recently brokered a “fast track” deal with Republican leadership in
the Senate. Fast-track, or Trade Promotion Authority, will allow President Obama to rush the secretly nego-
tiated Trans Pacific Partnership trade agreement through Congress, with little time for meaningful discussion
and no possibility for amendments or changes, and only an up or down vote. Labor unions, environmental
groups, and others are upset that Wyden, a Democrat, helped deliver the “undemocratic” fast track bill. They
also are calling on Oregon’s Congressional delegation to oppose it.