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NATION/WORLD Thursday, April 23, 2015 East Oregonian Page 7A Emotions over Obama’s trade agenda roil Senate, delay action By CHARLES BABINGTON Associated Press WASHINGTON — Emotional dis- agreements over trade erupted in Con- gress on Wednesday, when a liberal senator delayed a committee’s likely endorsement of a top trade priority for President Barack Obama. The day began with Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, predicting a “strong biparti- san vote” for “fast track” legislation. The measure would renew presidential authority to present trade deals that Congress can endorse or reject but not amend. But liberal Sen. Bernie Sanders, ,9W D ¿HUFH RSSRQHQW RI WKH WUDGH legislation, invoked a Senate schedul- ing rule to delay the committee’s ac- tions for hours. “This job-killing trade deal has been negotiated in secret,” said Sand- ers, who made a lengthy Senate speech denouncing the legislation. “It was drafted with input by special inter- ests and corporate lobbyists, but not from the elected representatives of the American people.” Hatch rejected the claims, saying fast track and other trade proposals have been carefully negotiated and will undergo long public scrutiny. “We need to be doing all we can tear down barriers to American exports while, at the same time, creating en- forceable rules for our trading partners so we can be sure that American work- ers and job creators are competing on a OHYHOSOD\LQJ¿HOG´+DWFKVDLG He said the committee would work late into the night if necessary to ad- dress many proposed amendments. The committee resumed its meeting in the late afternoon. The Hatch-Sanders dispute is one of many emerging as Congress turns to trade proposals bitterly opposed by labor unions and others who say trade pacts hurt U.S. jobs. Obama says his Democratic oppo- nents have their facts wrong. He wants fast-track powers to help push free- trade proposals such as the 12-nation 7UDQV3DFL¿F3DUWQHUVKLS “I would not be doing this trade deal if I did not think it was good for the middle class,” Obama said in an inter- view Tuesday with MSNBC. “When you hear folks make a lot of sugges- tions about how bad this trade deal is, when you dig into the facts, they are wrong.” AP Photo/Doug Pizac, File In this Jan. 17, 1994 file photo, the covered body of Los Angeles Police Officer Clarence Wayne Dean, 46, lies near his motorcycle which plunged off the State High- way 14 overpass that collapsed onto Interstate 5, after a magnitude-6.7 Northridge earthquake. AP Photo/Shizuo Kambayashi People walk in front of a container ship docked at a container terminal in Tokyo on Wednesday. Several top Democrats aren’t back- ing down, however. Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada told re- porters, “I’m not only no, I’m hell no” on Obama’s bid for fast-track author- ity. Few issues divide Democrats more than trade. Obama, like former Presi- dent Bill Clinton, supports free trade, but many Democratic lawmakers do not. Clinton’s and Obama’s stands — and liberal groups’ opposition — pose a dilemma for Hillary Rodham Clin- WRQWKHIRUPHU¿UVWODG\QRZVHHNLQJ the presidency herself. Campaigning Tuesday in New Hampshire, she de- clined to say whether she supports the 3DFL¿FULPSURSRVDO “We need to build things, too,” Clinton said, taking a pro-manufac- turing stance generally embraced by both parties. “We have to do our part in making sure we have the capabili- ties and skills to be competitive,” she said, while getting back to “a much more focused effort, in my opinion, to try to produce those capacities here at home.” Senate Finance Committee member Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., says the ad- ministration must press China to stop manipulating its currency, even though &KLQD LVQ¶W D SDUW\ WR WKH 3DFL¿FULP negotiations. If a nation keeps its currency value DUWL¿FLDOO\ORZLWFDQERRVWH[SRUWVE\ making local products more affordable to foreigners. Economists disagree on whether China still engages in the practice, and the Obama administra- tion says it addresses currency manip- ulation in the fast-track bill. The Senate committee added Schumer’s anti-currency manipulation amendment to a customs bill Wednes- day, despite administration objections. But Schumer’s staff said he would not try to add it to the fast-track bill, which would be more problematic for Obama. Republicans generally support trade pacts. But Obama can’t count on them DORQHWRSXVKWKH¿HUFHO\GHEDWHGELOOV through the GOP-controlled House and Senate. “He has to bring Democrats,” Rep. Paul Ryan, the Wisconsin Republican who heads the House Ways and Means Committee, said Wednesday. Most or all Senate Finance Com- mittee Republicans support fast track. Democratic supporters include Sens. Ron Wyden of Oregon, Maria Can- twell of Washington, Tom Carper of Delaware and Mark Warner of Virgin- ia. Committee passage would move the bill to the full Senate. In the House, the Ways and Means Committee was scheduled to debate the fast-track legislation Thursday. The panel’s top Democrat, Rep. Sander Levin of Michigan, is offering an al- ternative bill that would make greater demands on trading partners on issues including workers’ conditions and cur- rency policies. House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi endorsed Levin’s bill. BRIEFLY New airstrikes in Yemen after Saudis say operation over SANAA, Yemen (AP) — Hours after Saudi Arabia declared an end to its coalition’s nearly monthlong air campaign in Yemen, new airstrikes Wednesday hit Iran-backed militants and their allies in two cities, and the rebels said they would welcome U.N.-led peace talks in the FRQÀLFWWKDWKDVNLOOHGPRUH than 900 people. The continued airstrikes suggested that the U.S.- backed offensive, aimed at restoring Yemen’s internationally recognized president, was entering a new phase in which the Saudi-led military action will be scaled back but not halted completely. Air raids struck positions held by the rebels, known as Houthis, and their allies in the southern port of Aden and the central city of 7DL]<HPHQLRI¿FLDOVVDLG Fighting continued in both areas between the rebels and supporters of exiled President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi, a close U.S. DOO\ZKRÀHG<HPHQRQ March 25. The capital of Sanaa was calm, however, giving residents their most peaceful night in almost four weeks. In the evening, thousands of pro-Houthi demonstrators marched and vowed they would never submit to what they described as “Saudi- American aggression.” The Shiite rebels are backed by former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, an autocrat who ruled the impoverished but strategic country for three decades until he was removed amid a 2011 Arab Spring uprising. His military forces have aided the rebels who advanced from the north and control much of Yemen, including Sanaa. Saudi Arabia and a coalition of its Gulf allies began the air campaign March 26, aimed at crushing the Houthis and allied military units loyal to Saleh. The Saudis believe the rebels are tools for Iran to take control of Yemen. Iran has provided political and humanitarian support to the Houthis, but both Tehran and the rebels deny it has armed them. commanding enough votes WREHFRQ¿UPHGEHFDXVH Republican leaders made the decision, never fully explained, to delay her FRQ¿UPDWLRQYRWHXQWLO WKHWUDI¿FNLQJELOOZDV completed. Now that it is, Lynch will get a vote Thursday to replace Eric Holder and become the QDWLRQ¶V¿UVWEODFNIHPDOH attorney general. The partisan gridlock RQWKHWUDI¿FNLQJELOODQG Lynch made no one look good, and with all sides eager for a resolution Cornyn worked with Sens. Patty Murray, D-Wash., and Democratic Leader Harry Reid of Nevada to compromise, which they announced Tuesday. Over 143 million Americans live in quake-prone areas “The distribution of earth- quake risk is much broader and wider beyond the West LOS ANGELES — More Coast,” lead researcher and than 143 million people in USGS contractor Kishor the Lower 48 states now live Jaiswal said in an email. The new work focused on on shaky ground, earthquake the Lower 48 states because scientists say. That’s because more scientists don’t yet have up- people have moved into the dated maps for the whole quake-prone West Coast and country. Researchers didn’t some quake zones were re- take into account regions cently expanded, according where small earthquakes to researchers from the U.S. have been caused by oil and gas drilling. If those were in- Geological Survey. The research didn’t in- cluded, the number of people clude Alaska, Hawaii and exposed to shaking would be Puerto Rico, but scientists higher, Jaiswal said. The team also calculated using older data estimated that nearly half of Americans potential economic losses — or 150 million people — from damaged buildings such as homes, hospitals, schools live in earthquake regions. About 28 million peo- DQG¿UHVWDWLRQV7KHDYHUDJH ple face the highest threat, loss amounted to $4.5 billion mostly along the West Coast ZLWKWKHJUHDWHVW¿QDQFLDOKLW where the San Andrea Fault to California, Oregon and cuts through California and a Washington. “We’ve always been told huge undersea fault lurks off that we should be prepared. WKH3DFL¿F1RUWKZHVW The latest calculations by But this study puts some the USGS, Federal Emergen- teeth into the recommenda- cy Management Agency and tion,” said USGS seismolo- California Geological Sur- gist Sue Hough who had no vey were reported Wednes- connection to the research. Government scientists day at a Seismological So- ciety of America meeting in have been testing a West Coast seismic alert system Pasadena. There have been a few designed to detect the initial SUHYLRXV DWWHPSWV WR ¿JXUH shock waves from a large out how many people live in jolt, calculate the strength quake-prone areas. A feder- and give a few seconds of al estimate two decades ago warning before the arrival of found that 75 million people slower, damaging waves. Supporters say an early in 39 states were at risk of warning system would allow shaking. The USGS last year up- trains to stop, companies to dated its national earthquake shut off gas lines and people maps that increased the to duck under a table until the quake danger for one-third shaking stops. Only select of the country. While the Pa- scientists and companies cur- FL¿FFRDVWUHPDLQVDVHLVPLF rently receive the alerts. U.S. Geological Survey: hotspot, other regions as the Rockies, Midwest, New En- http://earthquake.usgs.gov/ gland and parts of the South- hazards/ Seismological Society: east also face an elevated http://www.seismosoc.org/ risk. By ALICIA CHANG AP Science Writer Anti-human WUDI¿FNLQJELOO passes Senate WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate unanimously passed legislation Wednesday to help the victims of human WUDI¿FNLQJHQGLQJD tortuous partisan standoff over abortion that also GHOD\HGFRQ¿UPDWLRQRI President Barack Obama’s attorney general nominee. The vote was 99-0 to approve the Justice for 9LFWLPVRI7UDI¿FNLQJ Act, which expands law enforcement tools to target VH[WUDI¿FNHUVDQGFUHDWHV a new fund to help victims. The House has passed similar legislation and the White House has voiced support. The unanimous outcome put a bipartisan punctuation mark on legislation that started out with wide support from both parties, but veered into a partisan cul-de-sac last month when Democrats said they’d noticed language that could expand federal prohibitions on abortion funding. How or why Democrats had failed to VHHWKHSURYLVLRQLQWKH¿UVW place became a topic of frosty dispute on Capitol Hill, with Republicans pointing out that the bill had unanimously passed committee, and one 'HPRFUDWLFVHQDWRU¶VRI¿FH acknowledging that an aide had in fact known of the abortion language. At the same time, Attorney General- designate Loretta Lynch languished despite 5K RUN, 5K WALK, 10K RUN, KID'S BUTTE SCOOT All races begin & end at Hermiston's Butte Park DRAWINGS • FUN FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY Online registration & race information at WWW.BUTTECHALLENGE.COM REGISTER ONLINE BY APRIL 23RD TO ORDER A CUSTOM TECHNICAL RACE T-SHIRT All proceeds benefit THE HERMISTON CROSS COUNTRY PROGRAM Thank you for your support!
